Scarlet
by Kitai Matsuru
Summary: 15 UP!my 1st ChaoticGuardian Force fic.Van and company are called by dr.D to come see something.It turns out to be a girl.Irvine recognizes her as Scarlet,a feared zoid pilot,only she seems to have lost her memory.They wanna help,but is it worth it?
1. Introductions

I really can't explain how I came up with this fic.  I was watching Zoids: Guardian Force and came up with the idea.  Don't know why or how, but it's been bugging me, so I had to write it.  Anyway, hope you enjoy.  This will not be that much of a romance, but it does have partial Van/Fiona and Irvine/Moonbay.  Takes place during Guardian Force, which is 4 years after Chaotic, if you didn't know.  It's really good^.^  I love GF.

Disclaimer:  I don't own Zoids, I only own this fic and the characters I make up.

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The metal sliding doors to the room opened up and four people walked in.  The group consisted of Van, Fiona, Irvine, and Moonbay.  The room they were now in was like a hallway, or so that was all they could walk on.  It was like a small balcony set in the middle of the room.  The walkway hung above a laboratory and on one side was a huge glass cased room.  The walls around both rooms were white.  Halfway down the walkway, Karl Lichen Schubaltz stood, hands on the rail, looking slightly downward into the huge, glass encased room.  Van and the others approached him.

"Hey Major Schubaltz," said Van.  He turned his attention to them instead.

"Hello Van," he said.

"Why'd you call for us to come here?" asked Van.  Karl turned away from him and looked back into the glass room.

"Look down there," he said.  They all went to the railing and looked into the room, slightly looking downward.  They were confused.

"I don't get it.  Just what are we looking for?" asked Moonbay.  Major Schubaltz pointed downward and their eyes followed.

"It's a…a girl," said Fiona.  Van looked to Karl.

"What's the deal?  What's with the girl?" he asked.

"We found her a few days ago.  She seems to have lost her memory.  She doesn't even remember her name.  We've been running tests and doing research on her, but we haven't found anything yet," he explained.

"Why the glass room?" asked Fiona.  "She seems harmless."

"Doctor D decided that we should take precautions.  We don't know anything about this girl so we wanted to make sure that she wouldn't be able to cause any trouble."  Just then, the sliding, metal doors opened again and Doctor D walked in.  He looked disappointed.

"I just don't get it.  She won't talk to anyone.  We can't even get a name from her.  This is hopeless," he said as he walked up.  He then looked to Van and the others.  "Oh good, you're here."

"What's going on here gramps?" asked Van.

"I'm glad you asked.  I'm sure Major Schubaltz here has filled you in on most of the details.  We found this girl wandering the desert a few days ago.  We don't know who she is or where she came from."

"So why'd you bring us here?" asked Irvine.

"I was hoping you guys could help out, you know, maybe see if you can get her to talk.  She looks around the same age as you guys, so maybe she'll be more trusting towards all of you."

"We'll try gramps, but we can't promise anything," said Van.

"Alright, then come this way."  H led them through another door and then down some stairs.  They soon arrived at another door.  "Well, go in," he said.  They all walked into the glass room.  Actually, only that one part was glass.  Other than that wall, everything else in the room was white.  The girl sat on a white chair.  She was wearing a long, white shirt and a pair of white pants.  Her back was to them.  They walked around to the front of her to see what she looked like.

"Hi," said Fiona.  All the girl did was raise her head and look at them, each one in turn.  "We're here to talk to you."  The girl looked to Fiona, who smiled at her.

"Fiona is right.  We just want to help you, that's all," said Moonbay, who also smiled.

"Well, let me introduce everybody," said Van.  "This is Fiona, Moonbay, and Irvine.  Oh, and I'm Van.  Who might you be?" he asked.  The girl said nothing, except stared at them all.

"What's the matter?  Can't you speak?" asked Fiona.  The girl just looked down.

"I'll tell you," said Irvine.  They looked to him.

"What?" asked Moonbay.

"Do you know her or something?" asked Van.

"You could say that."  He looked at the girl.

"But how?" asked Fiona.

"That red hair, the yellow eyes, it has to be her.  Doctor D must have known and put her here for that reason."

"What are you talking about?" asked Van.

"Her name is Scarlet," said Irvine.  The girl seemed to jump a little at the mention of the name and then looked up to him.  "I'm right aren't I?"  The girl didn't say anything, just looked to him.

"I thought that might be who it was," said Doctor D.  He had just walked in through the door with Schubaltz.

"What's so special about her?" asked Van.

"It's hard to believe you don't know," said Irvine.  "Like I said, her name is Scarlet; she's also known as the Crimson Dawn.  She's a very dangerous person and a very gifted zoid pilot."

"So she's a zoid warrior?" asked Fiona.

"One of the best," said Doctor D.

"What makes her so great?" asked Moonbay.

"I'll take this one," said Irvine.  "By the age of 11, she was already a zoid pilot.  When she was 12, she had mastered her zoid and had joined the Empire.  She was an imperial soldier, but her rank moved up dramatically in only a short time.  By the age of 13, she had already wiped out more units than you could count."

"Amazing," said Van.

"Yes, I remember her.  She was in the Imperial army and was sent only to do the hardest tasks.  She truly was a magnificent zoid pilot," said Schubaltz.

"What kind of zoid did she have?" asked Van.

"It was a Dark Spiner," said Schubaltz.  

(A/N  If you wanna see what one looks like, then go to )

"A Dark Spiner?  Can't say I've ever seen one of those before."

"Weren't those types of zoids meant to attack in groups?" asked Doctor D.

"Yes.  They are, however, it does have a charged particle cannon and a few blades as well, and so it's a formidable opponent."

"It's strange that something like this would happen to a pilot like her," said Moonbay.

"I know what you mean," said Van.

"Scarlet is an amazing pilot, but I wouldn't call her great," said Irvine.  "She's killed too many to be considered great."

"I'll have to agree with you there," said Schubaltz.  "She served with us in the army for a long time, but she disappeared 5 years ago.  No one has seen her since then."

"I wonder…" said Fiona.  They all looked to her.  "I wonder what could have made such a great zoid pilot end up like this."  They all seemed to ponder this for a while.

"I…"

They all looked to Scarlet, who had just said something.

"I was…attacked by…" she said.  She then held her head in her hands.  "I was attacked…I…attacked…was…attacked… Raven."

"You were attacked by Raven," said Fiona sympathetically.

"Well, that makes cense.  To a pilot like her, loosing must have sent her into shock.  It's no wonder she can't remember anything," said Moonbay.

"Well then, I guess we'll just have to help her get her memory back," said Van.

"You can count me out," said Irvine as he walked to the door.  They all looked after him.

"What?" asked Van.

"I don't feel like helping her," he said as he walked through the door.  Fiona looked to Scarlet.

"It's alright, we'll help you, don't worry," she said.

"I don't know what's up with Irvine, but I'm gonna find out," said Moonbay as she ran out the door after him.  Irvine was walking on the outside balcony.

"Irvine!  Wait up!"

He looked behind him, only to find Moonbay.

"What's the deal?  Why don't you wanna help her?" asked Moonbay.  "And don't say because you're not being paid, cause I sure as heck know that that's not the reason."  Irvine turned to face her completely.

"Scarlet is known as the Crimson Dawn for a reason.  Crimson is the color of blood and dawn is the time most are executed.  I don't think I mentioned it, but her other nickname is the Executioner."

"But…"

"She's killed more people than you can imagine, and she did it simply out of her own twisted pleasure.  She's a killer.  In my eyes, she's no better than Raven, no, scratch that, she IS Raven.  Their ideals are nearly the same.  Raven is my enemy, and I don't help enemies."

"That may be, but she's not Raven.  She's an individual who doesn't know who she is, and she needs our help."

"When she gets her memory back, what makes you think she'll be any different?  She'll remember who she is and what she does, and then things will start all over again.  She'll probably kill all of you first."

"But what if she's different.  What if she realizes what she did and changes because we helped her.  Maybe things will be different.  You're not giving her a chance…"

"I don't need to give her a chance!  She's nothing but a cold blooded killer and I'll have no part in this!" yelled Irvine.  Moonbay was a little afraid.  He was definitely mad for some reason.  She decided not to further his anger and walked out the door.

"So, is that how you feel?"

Irvine turned around to find Doctor D standing where Moonbay had been a few minutes ago.

"Can't say I blame you," said Doctor D.  Irvine turned away.  "I understand."

"What would you know?"

"No matter what you do, Irvine, it won't bring them back," said Dr. D.  Irvine quickly looked to him.

"How did you…?" began Irvine

"When we first found Scarlet, I had a good idea as to who she was.  I did research on Scarlet's history and found listings of everything she'd done.  I also found out about the towns she had destroyed and the lives she took.  I came across one of the first towns she destroyed.  When I was looking over the list of survivors, I found only a handful.  And one of them…was named Irvine.  It said his parents had died in the attack.  That was you, wasn't it?"

Irvine was silent.  He just stared at the sky, now filled with stars.

"It's strange really," said Irvine.  "She's only a year younger than me.  She's younger than I am and yet…she destroyed the whole town.  I couldn't do anything to stop her."

"Sulking won't bring them back, you know that.  That girl in there needs help and even though you may be right about her; that she might turn back to the way she was before and decide to kill us all, I think it's worth the risk."

"How so?"

"She's human, just like us.  People make mistakes and they deserve second chances.  Look at you.  You've been given second chances, so why can't you give someone else one."

"…"

"You need to stop living in the past.  Maybe by helping Scarlet, some good will come of it.  Who knows?"

"Fine.  I'll stick around, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna help her," said Irvine, as he walked past Dr. D and through the door, down the stairs.  Dr. D just smiled.

"I knew he'd come around," said Dr. D, as he, too, walked through the door and down the stairs.

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Well, what do you think?  I've been wanting to write this for a while now.  Sorry if I got any facts wrong.  I still haven't seen the last 5 eps of GF, so I don't know what happens or anything (curse you Cartoon Network).  Any who, that's all.  Hope this worked and if you liked it, I'll promise to write another chapter soon, all right?  And like I said, it will be a partial V/F, I/M fic.  Okay? Okay, so, see ya later, or as I say it, Audi^.^


	2. Testing

This fic will probably be shorter than I had originally thought, but it all depends on how long I want the chapters to be.  And word of advice:  If you have stitches in your mouth, it's a bad idea to touch them.  Believe me.  Anyway, I feel better.  Well, let's get on with it.

 Disclaimer:  I don't own Zoids.

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"All right, now let's try this again," said Doctor D.  They were in the same closed off, white room with the glass wall that they had been in before.  Van, Fiona, and Moonbay were all sitting in chairs that had been brought in.  They were merely spectators right now.  Irvine was leaning against a wall, but they weren't too far away from him at all.  Karl Schubaltz was sitting in a chair as well, but he was sitting near Doctor D.  Across from Dr. D sat Scarlet.  Van and the others sat behind her.

"What is your real name?" asked Doctor D.  "What kind of zoid do you have?  Come on, you've gotta remember something on your own."  Scarlet just shook her head and looked to him.

"I've told you everything I know," said Scarlet.  They all just sighed.

"This is hopeless," said Irvine.  He actually found this entertaining.  They looked to him.

"Don't say that," said Moonbay.  "She'll remember if she keeps trying."

"I still say you're wasting your time by helping her," said Irvine as he pushed away from the wall.  "This is getting boring.  I'm going for a walk."  He opened the door and left the room.

"What's with him?" asked Van.

"Don't bother.  He has his reasons," said Doctor D.  Scarlet just stared down to the ground.

"Is it that he hates me?" she asked.  They looked to her, a little shocked.  Fiona put a hand on her shoulder.

"No.  I'm sure he doesn't hate you," comforted Fiona.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," said Doctor D.  They all looked to him.  "Let's just say that Irvine isn't very fond of you.  Hate is too strong a word."

"He's right though," said Scarlet.  "It really is hopeless.  I'm never gonna remember anything."

"Don't think like that," said Moonbay.  "You gotta think positive in these situations."

"Moonbay is right," said Van.  "And we'll help you.  You can count on that."

"Yeah," said Fiona.

"See Scarlet?  You can do it.  You've got friends who will help you through this.  It'll be fine," said Dr. D.

"Friends?" questioned Scarlet.  "I don't…I don't remember having any friends before."

"Well, you have some now," said Van.

"If you guys wouldn't mind, I'd like to run some tests now.  You don't mind, do you Scarlet?" asked Dr. D.

"It's fine.  Anything is, as long as it'll help me find out about myself," she responded.

"Alright, then I'm gonna need you to stay here and everyone else needs to leave.  It won't take long."  They all exited the room through the door Irvine had gone through, but not long after they left, Irvine came back in, just as Doctor D was walking over to a small lab area in the huge room.  Dr. D noticed Irvine standing there.

"Hey Irvine.  Come here," said Dr. D.  Irvine walked over to where he was, a little annoyed and wondering why no one else was there.

"What do you want old man?" asked Irvine.

"I'd like you to help me with this," he said.  He and Irvine stepped into the small, boxed off area.  It was an operating room used to work the machinery in the huge lab.  Doctor D walked over to a speaker that was hooked up to the outside room.

"You ready Scarlet?" asked Doctor D.  His voice echoed through the large room.

"What do I do?" she asked.  She spoke loud enough so that they could hear her from inside the small, closed off room.

"Just go and stand over there, on that platform."  Scarlet walked over to a white platform and stood on it, awaiting orders.  "Good.  Now I need you to stay calm.  Nothing bad will happen, I promise, so just stay still," said Doctor D.

"Alright," said Scarlet.  She stood still, almost as if she was lifeless.  Her eyes showed no emotion.  They were cold, but in a way, they were sad as well.  A glass dome came down around her and she just stood, not moving, just staring strait ahead, making sure that she wouldn't mess up the experiment.  Electricity began to surge on the glass, but it stayed around it, never traveling further inside towards Scarlet.  She didn't seem afraid at all.  Doctor D was pushing buttons on the control panel and Irvine just watched, wondering what it was he was doing.  There were a lot of computers in the room and they were displaying information that was hard to understand and as fast as they displayed it, printers were printing it.

"Well, that's enough of that," said Doctor D.  He flipped a switch and the electricity disappeared.  The glass dome was lifted.  Scarlet stepped down and stood there, waiting for them to tell her what to do next.

"All right Irvine, now I'm going to need your help," said Doctor D.

"With what?" asked Irvine, not really wanting to do anything.

"I need you to help hook up that equipment," he took a minute to point to the wires and machines that he was talking about, "to Scarlet."

"Why should I do that?"

"Would you rather stay here and operate this?" asked Doctor D, already knowing the answer.  There were to many buttons and machines to operate at once for Irvine's liking.

"Fine," he said, as he left the small room and walked over to Scarlet.  He wasn't very happy at all to be helping her.  She looked to him as he came over.  "Go sit in that chair," he said, motioning to where he meant.  She nodded and walked over, taking her seat in the metal chair.  "Hey old man.  Just what is it I'm suppose to do?"

"Take that wire there, the one with the large clip on the end," said Doctor D.  Irvine picked it up.  "All right, now hook it onto her index finger."  Irvine did as he was told.  "Now hook those three wires to her wrist.  The pads on those wires are sticky, so they should stay on."  Irvine proceeded to hook the wires.

"You're name is Irvine, right?" asked Scarlet.  He looked to her and then looked back to what he was doing.

"Yeah, why?" he asked, wanting to know what she was getting at.

"Do you hate me?" she asked.  He looked to her and then continued with the wires.  He didn't really want to answer that question.  "Do you?" she asked again.

"What if I do?" he said.  He wasn't about to give a strait answer.

"I…I don't understand.  Why?" she asked.  This was getting annoying.  This was like talking to a child.

"I just do, okay?  You don't even remember anything, so who really cares?"

"I care.  I want to know.  Why?  Why do you hate me?"  Now Irvine was getting annoyed.  He finished with the wires.

"Am I done yet?" he yelled to Dr. D.

"Hook that to her head," said Dr. D.  He pointed to a dome shaped cap that had wires coming out of it.  Irvine placed it on her head for her and then proceeded to walk back to the small room.

"You didn't answer my question," said Scarlet.  Irvine stopped to look at her and was about to say something, but quickly turned around and walked back to the small room.  Once he was in, Doctor D flipped a switch and the machine started.

"Now Scarlet, you need to sit still.  No moving," said Doctor D.  The machine started to beep and lights began to flash.  A lot more data seemed to be getting collected by the machines and the printers were printing it.  Scarlet, once again, didn't move an inch.  She just stared strait ahead of her, as if she didn't have a thought in her head.  She was empty, or that's what it seemed.  Even when she was talking, she was emotionless.  She had a flat tone to her voice, as if she was always confused.  As if she was trying to understand something.  This wasn't the same person from before.  Irvine was just sitting there, thinking.  When he saw Scarlet before, she was different.

Flashback…(A/N couldn't think of a better way to indicate this *sweatdropps*)

The town, or what was left of it was burning.  Houses were falling apart and some were bursting into flames.  There weren't many screams, or the ones that could be heard anyway.  That's most likely because there was no one left to scream, or that perhaps the shock was to great, or maybe they didn't have enough time to.  There were a few bodies lying around, here and there.  No life in any of them, not at all.  A few people were still left, walking around, too shocked and afraid to do anything.  Among them was a young boy with brown hair and gray eyes.  He walked around, not knowing what to expect next.  The heat was getting to him as well.  The sky was dark, but now the stars had been blocked out by smoke clouds rising from the burning city.  It was hard to believe that this was done by one zoid.  Just one, and there wasn't even an organoid involved.  The boy stopped as he saw someone standing on a pile of broken and singed wood.  She was looking in his direction, but he was sure she didn't see him.  She wore a black body suit with a red shirt and shorts over it.  She stood in the light of the fire, so everything was seeable.  She had waist long red hair that swayed as the wind blew it.  Her eyes were yellow.  What scared the boy was the anger and hate in her eyes.  The will to destroy was there…no…the need.  What was even stranger was that she looked as old as he was, maybe even younger.  She turned and walked towards the zoid that stood behind her and she got in, leaving the area as it was and not bothering to look back or care as to what she had done.

End Flashback…

Irvine just stared at what was in front of him.  It was almost hard to believe really, that this was Scarlet, the Crimson Dawn, the Executioner.  She was nothing more than a helpless child now.  Her eyes lost that will to destroy, and were now filled with what looked like sorrow.  Why?  Irvine didn't really care; in fact, he wished she was the way she was before.  Then he'd have no problem hating her, but this was making him look bad.  In their eyes, she was just a lost girl who needed help.  They didn't know what she was capable of.

"Why didn't you answer her question?" asked Doctor D.  Irvine looked to him oddly.

"Why should I?" was the best response he could think of.

"You know why you hate her.  Don't you think she has a right to know?"

"Who cares?  She wouldn't understand.  It's in the past."

"Exactly."

"Hmm?"

"It's in the past and there's no use dwelling on the past.  You should learn to take your own advice Irvine.  Why can't you just forget about it?  She's not like that anymore, in fact, she's quite the opposite."

"Just because she's different now and she has no memory doesn't make up for what she's done and for the lives she's destroyed.  You guys can do what you want, but I don't plan on helping.  I'll stay, but I'm not gonna play these mind games with her like you all do."  That was the end of their conversation and they both just sat quietly, waiting for the experiment to end.

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I finished it!  Another chapter done and I think I might make this fic longer than I thought.  And I know how it's gonna end!  I'm sorry if you don't like this, but pleaz don't flame me.  Like I said in my bio, I remove flames when I get them.  Anyway, I'm sorry that this was sorta short and I promise that the next chapter will be longer, that is, if I can think of enough stuff.  Oh well.  I hope you like it and I'll get another chapter out as soon as I can.

Audi^.^


	3. Results

Another chapter.  I woulda wrote it sooner, but my computer has been dead for a while.  It's been hard.  I've been bored, but I wouldn't have been if it wasn't for the fact that I got stuck in my video game and needed a walkthrough, but we went to the store yesterday and I bought four new CDs!  I'm so happy!  Anyway, here's the next chapter.

Disclaimer:  I don't own Zoids, but I do own any characters that I make up and this fic.

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"I wonder what those experiments were for," said Van.  He, Moonbay, Fiona, and Scarlet were in the huge lab like room.  Scarlet was sitting and they were standing.

"I was wondering the same thing," said Moonbay.

"Doctor D didn't tell me what they were for, he only said that they were essential," said Scarlet.

"Scarlet?" asked Fiona.  Scarlet looked up to her.

"What?"

"Well, it's just…your eyes.  They seem so emotionless, and yet in a way they seem sad as well, like you're in a constant daze.  They make you seem so…inhuman."

"That's because she is," said Irvine.  They all turned to him as he walked into the room, followed by Dr. D.

"What do you mean?" asked Van.

"Exactly what I said.  She isn't human."

"What?" asked Moonbay.  "How can you say that?"

"Because it's true," said Doctor D.  They all looked to him.  He was holding papers, which were most likely the results of the experiments.

"What do you mean gramps?" asked Van.

"Well, I got the results back from the tests we ran.  These results are unbelievable, in fact, it's physically impossible for a human to come out with these types of results."

"What were the tests for anyway?" asked Fiona.

"Well, they were to check physical structure and to measure brain waves, you know, things like that.  According to these papers though, Scarlet is definitely something else.  Her physical structure is much like a normal person, not to mention her appearance.  It's easy to bypass, so I had to do these tests and even then it was still possible.  Her cellular structure is very much related to a normal person, meaning that her cells were created by using a normal human cell, only it had been experimented on."

"Meaning?" asked Van.

"Meaning that Scarlet was created.  Don't get me wrong though.  She is still very human.  Her cells were just genetically created using advanced robotic technology.  She can still bleed, feel, and have emotions just like any normal person, of course, like you were saying Fiona, her eyes are very emotionless, and that's because she wasn't told to feel any emotions, but that's slowly breaking, on account her eyes are quite sad right now.  I'm guessing that the person Scarlet was working for was the one who told her to destroy and hate, but that order has been forgotten since her fight with Raven and her disappearance."

"So I'm…I'm nothing but a machine.  A tool for fighting," said Scarlet.

"That's right," said Irvine.  "You're nothing but a worthless machine."

"Irvine," said Moonbay harshly.

"How can you say that?" asked Van in the same tone.

"I'm just stating the truth.  A tool for war like her is worthless.  She knows only to fight, so what good is she?"

"Now hold it right there," said Doctor D.  "She is most definitely not worthless.  She is a living being.  Even though she was created through advanced robotic technology and genetics does not make her any different from a normal person.  She feels, breaths and even acts like a human, and whether you think so or not doesn't matter.  She's generally no different from any of us."

"No different from us, huh?  She's a killer, a cold-blooded killer.  She's destroyed more lives than you can even count, old man."  And with that, Irvine walked out the door and away from the room.

"What's with him?" asked Van.

"You can't blame him really," said Doctor D.  "He's just confused right now, that's all."

"About what?" asked Fiona.

"About this whole thing."

"He…he hates me, doesn't he," said Scarlet in more of a statement than a question.

"No, I'm sure he doesn't hate you," comforted Fiona.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that Fiona," said Doctor D.  "Irvine does hate Scarlet, but he hates what she once was, and even though she's changed, deep down, he's wishing she was still the same killer she was before."

"But why?"

"Because that way, it'd be easier for him to hate her.  Hating her the way she is now makes him look cold and cruel.  If she were still the killer, it wouldn't be so hard for him to hate her.  He's just confused right now.  He believes that by helping Scarlet remember, we'll all be putting ourselves in danger.  He just doesn't want to see any of you get hurt, that's all."

"But why would we be put in danger?" asked Van.

"Because by helping Scarlet remember, it's very possible that she could go back to the way she was before, you know, recover her old memory, but also her old self along with it, and if that should happen, we would all be doomed I'm afraid."

"Why?  What was I like, you know, back before I lost my memory?" asked Scarlet.

"Well, according to reports that were made and according to the information I've heard, not to mention experiencing the damage you've caused first hand, you definitely were a cold-blooded killer.  People who had seen you and lived to tell about it could only remember the crimson red of your hair and the hatred and need for destruction that burned in your eyes.  When you went into a town, not one building would be left standing and not many could boast that they lived through one of your attacks.  Like Irvine said, you killed countless numbers of people and destroyed more towns than even Raven, since you started piloting at a young age.  Let's just hope that by recovering your memory that that's all you get back.  We don't need another Raven around."

"So I really was a killer.  I destroyed so many people's lives," said Scarlet.  She closed her eyes and tears began to roll down her face.  "Why?  Why was I like that?  Who made me do those…those unspeakable things?"

"I don't know, but we'll do our best to find out," said Dr. D.

"Thank you, all of you, for being so kind and for helping me.  I really appreciate it, and please tell Irvine that I'm sorry.  I'm sorry for whatever it is that I did to hurt him so badly."

"He's not the type to accept an apology.  Not when he's this mad, anyway," said Moonbay.

"And besides," said Doctor D.  "It'd be better if you told him."

"But he hates me, doesn't he?"

"That may be, but you should tell him yourself.  Anyway, it's getting late.  Your rooms have all been prepared for you, so I hope you sleep well," said Dr. D.  They all said goodnight and soon walked off to their rooms.  Scarlet even got her own room, instead of sleeping in the lab area.  It wasn't long before they were all asleep.  Scarlet tossed and turned in her sleep.  Her dreams were being haunted by images she didn't understand, or remember.

{Dream sequence}(A/N  I so gotta find a new way to indicate these *sweatdrops*)

Everything seemed to be burning.  The buildings around the area were all on fire and most weren't even standing any more.  Charred wood lay everywhere, burned to the point that the fire went out.  It was a horrid site indeed.  The sky seemed to burn like the land below it.  The whole place seemed to be painted red from the crimson flames that tossed in the gentle wind that went through the area.  The only thing that stood out was Scarlet, her white shirt and pants standing out amidst the burning flames.  Her eyes scanned the area.  She couldn't see anyone, not a soul.  She walked around a little, trying to find someone, anyone who could explain this to her.  She then heard small whimpers and sobs coming from a small clearing in the town, where it seemed that the fire wasn't touching.  She walked a little further in the direction of the sobbing and she came upon a little girl who was lying on the ground, her face buried in her arms and she was crying.  Scarlet bent down near the girl.  Her hair was the same crimson color of Scarlet's.  She seemed about 6 years old at the most.  She had on a sky blue dress and black shoes.  Her long red hair was up in a bow.

"It's alright.  Don't cry," said Scarlet.  She reached out to touch the little girl, but her hand went right through her.  Scarlet quickly withdrew her hand, a little shocked and afraid.  Scarlet then heard footsteps approaching the area, but she stayed where she was.  A man, who was the younger version of Kernel Schubaltz, approached the girl who was lying on the ground.  He knelt down and then glanced around.  Scarlet watched him the whole time.  He then reached out and shook the young girl.

"Hey," he said to her.  The girl lifted her head and looked to him.  He gave a small smile to her.  "It's alright.  What happened here?"  The little girl sat up and that's when Scarlet noticed her eyes.  They were the same yellow color of her own.

"Some…some zoids came.  They burned the village and they…they killed my mommy and daddy," said the young girl.

"What's your name?" he asked.

"It's…"  But that was all Scarlet could hear.  The girl's mouth still moved, but the sound was gone.  The same was for all the sounds that were around her.  Scarlet stood up.

"What's going on?" she asked herself, but her voice was the only thing that could be heard.  She watched as the young girl stood up and walked off with Schubaltz.

"Wait," she called out, but neither could hear her.  The scene soon faded into blackness and she no longer saw anything, and soon, her own voice faded as well.

{End dream sequence}

Scarlet sat up quickly, a cold sweat appeared on her face.  She was breathing hard.

"I was so close…so close to finding out my real name, but…just what happened?"  She laid back down on her bed and soon enough, she fell back asleep, hoping that the rest of her night would be peaceful.

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Oooouuuuu, that was fun!  I had fun writing this chapter!  I didn't plan on it being this long, and I'm happy that I came up with this.  This is what happens when I write on impulse.  I come up with some interesting things, but I'll slowly reveal stuff, I promise, and if you've read other things by me, you'll realize that I like to, well, procrastinate with my plots of my stories.  It takes awhile to get to stuff, but I'll all come eventually.  I hope you guys are enjoying this.  Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go be happy about my new Creed and Linkin Park CDs.  And sorry for any spelling and grammar mistakes, cause I was too lazy to check for them.

Audi^.^


	4. Truths

Well, I don't know exactly how this chapter will go, since I haven't gotten it planned out, but I'm gonna do my best.  I'm having fun writing this and I'm hopping it'll get easier as I go.  Well, I'll get on with it now.

Disclaimer:  I don't own Zoids, just the characters I make.

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It was still late at night, around 3 in the morning or so.  Everyone was fast asleep, except for one person.  Scarlet laid in her bed, staring at the ceiling.  She had woken up again and this time she couldn't get back to sleep.  She finally gave up and got out of bed.  She slowly opened the door, making sure not to make a sound when doing so.  She walked out into the hallway and closed her door behind her.  She walked down the hallway, heading to one of the laboratories.  Once there, she quietly opened the door and walked in.  There were many objects lying around the room so Scarlet walked carefully, making sure that she didn't make a sound.  She walked over to the only light in the room, which was a computer screen.  She sat down in the computer chair and opened up a few files and eventually came to one with her name on it.  She opened it and read it to herself.

"Scarlet.  True name:  unknown.  Current age: 21.  Occupation:  Zoid pilot for the Empire."  She stopped reading for a while.  "I don't get it.  I have to find out why everyone is so afraid of me.  I know I've killed a lot of people, but I was just following orders to further the Empire, wasn't I?  I was in the army…so, I was only doing it to help them fight.  That's all."  She scrolled down further and found more files.  "What's this?"  She clicked it and pictures were brought up, and there was a story to go with each one.  There was a picture of what looked like burned wood and ash.  She read what was under it.

"This is what was left of Tempest, a town 50 miles outside of New Helic City.  The town was burned to the ground within only a few minutes.  The lives of nearly all the villagers were lost.  There were only 5 left out of what was once a population of 200 people.  The survivors all sustained injuries and the only thing that they remembered was a girl with red hair and heartless, bloodthirsty yellow eyes and her terrifying zoid known as a Dark Spiner."  She stopped reading.

"Did I…did I do…all of this?"  She looked at more pictures from the wreckage of the town.  Not a building stood standing.  She scrolled down more and found more links.  There were over 500 different reports.  "This can't be."  She clicked on another and a picture of nearly 30 wrecked zoids was shown.

"This was once a battalion of over 30 zoids.  Over half of the pilots were reported dead and others were injured and taken to the nearest heath care vicinities.  This was done by only one zoid, believed to be owned by Scarlet, the Crimson Dawn.  Some know her as the…Executioner."  She closed down the files and just sat in the chair for a while, staring at the white screen.  "What have I done?"  She got up and walked out of the room, not caring anymore if she woke anyone up or not.  She walked back down the hall and to her room.  She laid down in her bed and fell asleep.

******

The next morning rolled around quickly.  It was around 9:00 am.  Everyone began to slowly get out of bed and soon they were wandering the halls, waiting for breakfast to be ready.  Fiona was walking down the hall when she saw Doctor D coming and he looked like he needed to ask her something.

"Hey Fiona, could you go wake Scarlet up?"

"Sure.  I was heading in that direction anyway."

"Good.  Tell her that breakfast will be ready soon, so once she's up, you two can come down to the kitchen area."

"Alright."  Fiona and Doctor D went their ways and Fiona soon arrived at Scarlet's room.  She knocked first.

"Scarlet?  Are you awake?" she asked.  She didn't receive an answer, so she slowly opened the door.  When she looked inside, she saw Scarlet standing by her mirror.  She was already dressed in her white shirt and Capri pants that matched.  She wore white tennis shoes.  She looked to Fiona as she entered.  "Good morning," said Fiona.

"Good morning," responded Scarlet.

"I'm supposed to tell you that breakfast will be ready soon."

"Alright."  Her voice was quiet and this did not go unnoticed.

"Is something wrong?" asked Fiona.

"I'm…I'm everything they said I was.  I'm nothing but a killer…a cold blooded killer."

"Don't think like that.  You're different now."

"But what if Irvine is right.  What if when I get my memory back, I become what I once was?  Would all of you…would you guys have to kill me?"

"No.  We wouldn't kill you."

"But…but I killed so many.  I wrecked the lives of thousands and took the lives of even more.  I burned villages, destroyed battalions.  I turned a population of 200 people into 5 within a matter of minutes."

"Who told you this?"

"I read it.  I was up late last night, so I read it from the files on the computer."

"You might have been like that, but things are different now.  And when you finally do get your memory back, you'll have to make your own decision."

"I wanna be like this.  I don't want to hurt any more people."

"That's good.  Now let's go.  Breakfast is probably ready now."

"Okay."  She smiled lightly to Fiona.  They both walked out the door and down the hallway to go eat breakfast.  When they entered the room, everyone was already sitting down and had started eating.  They looked to Fiona and Scarlet as they entered the room.  Scarlet bowed her head slightly.

"Good morning," she said.

"Good morning," said Van and Moonbay.  "Irvine already ate, so he went out on a run with his Lightning Siax."

"Alright," said Fiona.  Her and Scarlet sat down at the table

"You're looking better today Scarlet," said Moonbay.

"I…I feel a little better too.  I wanna say thank you.  You guys have done so much for me already."

"Of course," said Van.  "What are friends for?"

'Friends,' thought Scarlet.  She smiled at the thought.

"Hey Scarlet?" asked Moonbay.

"What?" she asked.

"How about after breakfast we all go into the next town.  I'm betting you haven't seen the outside for a while."

"You're right.  I haven't."

"And we could probably buy you some new things as well."

"But…I don't have any money."

"That's alright," said Doctor D.  He was carrying two plates that he set down in front of Fiona and Scarlet.  "We have money there that you can use.  All of you can use it."

"Where did it come from?" asked Fiona.

"From funding.  They sent a lot of money and this month, we really don't need much of it.  All of our equipment is in top condition, so we really don't have a use for it."

"Thanks old man," said Moonbay.  "This'll be great!"

"Should we ask Irvine if he wants to come?" asked Van.

"He said he'd be out for a while," said Doctor D.  "You can all go ahead and I'll tell him when he gets back."

"Okay," said Fiona.

"Now before you leave, you should finish your breakfast," said Doctor D.

"We will," they answered simultaneously.  After finishing breakfast, they all walked down to the hanger.

"So what should we take?" asked Moonbay.  "The car or the Gustav?"

"I don't know," said Van as he thought about it.  He then seemed to think of something, or more like remember something.  "I completely forgot.  Zeke is still in the Blade Liger, which I left at the shop."  Van seemed panicked.

"I guess we're taking the Gustav," said Moonbay.

"What's a Zeke?" asked Scarlet.

"Oh that's right.  You haven't met him before," said Van.  "Well, Zeke is an organoid."

"An…organoid?  You have one?"

"Well, yeah."

"You know about organoids?" asked Fiona.

"Yes.  I…I remember hearing about them.  They fuse with zoids, increasing their abilities, right?"

"That's right."

"But I've never seen one before.  I'd like to meet this Zeke.  I'd love to be able to meet an organoid."

"Gee, you seem a lot better than you were yesterday.  I guess all you needed was a good nights sleep to clear your mind, huh?"

"Yeah…sure."

"Well, let's get going," said Moonbay.  They all walked over to the Gustav and got in.  Soon enough, they had pulled out of the hanger and were going down the road.

"Somebody did remember to get the money from Doctor D, right?" asked Van.

"Yeah, I have it," said Moonbay.

"That's good.  It'd be really bad if we got there and then had to drive back because we forgot it.

"Yeah, that would waste a lot of time."

"Just what are we going to buy?" asked Scarlet.

"Well, Van has to pay for the repairs that were made to the Blade Liger, but after that we'll probably go and buy you a new outfit," said Moonbay.

"A new outfit?"

"Yeah.  White's not really your color.  We can also get a few accessories as well.  It'll be fun."

"Fun…" said Scarlet quietly.

"Is something wrong?" asked Fiona.  Scarlet looked to her and gave a slight smile.

"No, I'm fine."  They all continued to drive along, slowly approaching the city in the distance.

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Yeah, I know, there was a lot of talking in this chapter.  I promise to write more soon.  I'm actually having a lot of fun with this and I hope you guys like it too.  Well, pleaz read and review, but no flames.  I'm also sorry for any spelling mistakes that I make.  I didn't have time to proof read this.  Well, I gotta get going.  It's really late right now and if I don't get to sleep, I'll probably get yelled at.  I'll see ya later!

Audi^.^


	5. Shopping

I had a hard time coming up with this chapter.  I had to change some of my ideas.  That and, well, I'm not sure.  I've been having writers block lately, so I hope this chapter is good.

Disclaimer:  I don't own Zoids.

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They arrived in the town and got out of the Gustav.  It was a normal sized town and there didn't seem to be many people around.

"Let's go to the shop first," suggested Van.

"Sounds good," said Moonbay.  The four of them walked over to the shop, which wasn't far from where they left the Gustav.

"Good, you're back," said the man at the counter.

"Yeah, sorry it took so long," apologized Van.

"That's alright."  Just then, a familiar growl came and a silver organoid ran towards them.

"Zeke!" said Van happily.  Zeke ran over to him and the others and roared happily.

"So that's and organoid," said Scarlet.  They looked to her.

"Yep.  This is my buddy Zeke."

"You've never seen an organoid?" asked Fiona.  She sadly shook her head.

"If I did, I don't remember ever seeing one."

"That's alright," said Moonbay.  They quickly paid the man at the counter and then loaded the Blade Liger onto the Gustav.  "All right, now let's shop," said Moonbay happily.  They walked further into the town, looking for stores.  The further they walked, the busier the city became.

"Does anybody see a clothing store?" asked Fiona.

"Not yet," said Van.

"Where'd all these people come from?  Did everybody decide to go shopping today?" asked Moonbay.

"Maybe," answered Van.  They kept walking until they finally reached one.  All of them walked in and to their surprise, it was nearly empty of people.

"Gees, you'd think with all the people around here, there'd be more in the stores," said Moonbay.

"I agree," said Van.  Fiona looked to Scarlet, who didn't seem that excited about all this.

"Well, what do you want to buy Scarlet?" she asked.

"I'm…not sure.  It's not like I do this often."

"We'll help you," said Moonbay.  She walked over and picked through some stuff.  "I think that the color black would look good on you."  She grabbed a pair of black pants and threw them over to Scarlet.  She caught them, but seemed surprised.

"Black?" she asked.

"Yeah.  That, and this blue color here."  She picked up what looked like a really short dress.  It was a cerulean blue color.  She threw it to her as well.  "And these boots."  She picked up a pair of brown boots.  She handed them to her instead of throwing them.  "Alright, now go and try them on."  She pushed Scarlet towards the changing room and then they stood around and waited.  Not long after, she walked out.  She still seemed nervous for some reason.  The blue dress thing was more like a shirt and skirt combined.  The pants fit nicely and the boots only came a few inches above her ankles.  The dress thing was long sleeved.  She tried to see what she looked like, but it failed.  She looked to them.

"I think it looks great," said Fiona.

"Yeah, but it's missing something," said Moonbay.  She walked over to another shelf and grabbed a red scarf like item.  She then went over to Scarlet and tied it around her waist.  She stood back to look at her and smiled.  "Now it's perfect."

"You think so?"

"Yep."

"Then I'll take it."  She smiled to them, giving them the sense that they made her feel better.  They walked over to the counter and paid for it.  She decided to wear her new outfit instead of changing back into her old one.

"What should we do now?" asked Van.

"Is anybody hungry?" asked Moonbay.

"I am!"

"I know you are, but anybody else?"  She received no answer.  "Okay, then we're gonna keep walking."

"But I'm hungry."

"You're always hungry."  Fiona laughed to herself and Scarlet smiled.

"Hey Moonbay, how much money did Doctor D give you?" asked Fiona.

"He gave me quite a bit actually.  We already paid for the repairs on the Blade Liger and Scarlet's new outfit and there's still enough to buy lunch and some other things if we want."

"You're hungry, aren't you Zeke?" asked Van.  Zeke growled and shook his head.

"Van, give it up," said Moonbay.

"And besides Van, Zeke doesn't need to eat, so there's no point in asking him," said Fiona.

"Why is everyone against me?"

"We're not against you, we're just not hungry," answered Moonbay.  They kept walking until they came across an accessory store.  Inside, there were necklaces, bracelets, and many other accessories.  They walked inside.  Van didn't seem very interested, but came in anyway.  They looked through nearly everything.  Even Scarlet took interest.  All the different gems caught her eye.  After looking, she found something that interested her over everything else.  It was a heart shaped, golden locket.  It had a red gem on it.  She picked it up and looked at it for a while.

"A locket, huh?" asked Moonbay.  Scarlet turned to look at her, still holding it.  "You can get it if you want."

"But isn't it to expensive?"

"It's not that expensive, I mean, it's not like we don't have enough money."

"Moonbay, that's Doctor D's money," said Van.

"He gave it to us to spend, didn't he?  So I say we take full use of it."  Van and Zeke sweatdropped.

"So I can get it?"

"Of course."

"We'll all have to take a picture and put it in there," said Fiona.  Scarlet opened the locket.  There was room for two small pictures in it.

"Then I'll take it," she said happily.  They walked over to the desk.

"How can I help you guys today?" asked the man from behind the desk.  They handed him the locket.  "A very nice item.  Wait just one moment."  He rang up the price and Moonbay easily paid for it.  The man began to count the money as he handed them the necklace.

"So, can we eat now?" asked Van.

"Well…" said Moonbay.  Fiona looked to Scarlet.

"Are you hungry Scarlet?" she asked.  Scarlet thought about it for a while.

"Did you say Scarlet?" asked the man from the counter.  He was staring at them.  Scarlet backed up after looking at his face.  It was an expression of fear mixed with disbelief.  None of them new exactly what to say.  The man looked at Scarlet and then seemed to back up.  "It is her.  I could never forget that red hair and those yellow eyes.  There's only one person named Scarlet who looks like that."  He seemed afraid.  They all swallowed hard, scared about what might happen.  Scarlet hid behind them, not wanting anything bad to happen to her or them.  "Why are all of you with her?"

"We're just shopping," said Fiona.  For some reason, she didn't seem as scared as the others.

"She's a killer."

"You're wrong.  She's not like that anymore, she's different now."

"What makes you so sure she wont just turn around one day and kill you all?"

"She wouldn't do that, she's our friend," said Van.  He was getting angry now too.

"Besides, she doesn't even remember any of it.  She's just a normal person now," said Moonbay.

"I still don't want her in here.  Leave now, or I'll call the authorities."

"Fine, we're leaving."  They walked out the door and away from the shop.

"You guys didn't have to do that," said Scarlet.  That lifeless look that was filled with sorrow had returned to her face.

"Do what?" asked Moonbay.

"Stand up for me."

"That's what friends are for Scarlet," said Fiona.

"That's right.  Friends help each other out," said Van.

"Thank you."

"Don't mention it," said Moonbay.  They kept walking through the town.

"So, can we eat now?" asked Van.  Everyone sweatdropped and just kept walking.

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Okay, I know.  This wasn't that long or that exciting and it probably has spelling mistakes, cause I didn't feel like checking.  I'll fix them one of these days, but not now.  It's late, and I gotta get to bed, but I promise that I'll write more soon and the next chapter will hopefully be longer and more exciting.  I'm just lucky that I don't have school for another two weeks…sort of.  More like a week and a half.  Well, gotta run!

Audi^.^


	6. Trouble

Hi.  It's me again.  I know it's been a while.  I didn't know that writing 4 fics at once would be this hard.  I thought it would be easy, but I guess I was wrong.  Oh well.

Disclaimer:  Look at last chapter

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Moonbay, Van, Fiona, and Scarlet were walking through the town, trying to find something interesting.  Just then, Van ran up to a window.

"Wow," he said.  The rest of them walked up behind him.

"What is it Van?" asked Fiona.

"It's…a restaurant!" he said excitedly.  Fiona and Moonbay sweatdropped.

"Fine.  I guess we'll eat now," said Moonbay.  "It is almost time for lunch."

"Yes!" cheered Van.  He ran ahead of them and into the restaurant.  The others followed by slowly, but were soon in the restaurant.  The four of them walked over to a table near the window and sat down.  Soon after, a waiter walked over to them.

"What can I get for you?" he asked.

"Spaghetti for me," said Van.

"Spaghetti sounds good.  We'll all have that," said Moonbay.

"Four orders of Spaghetti," repeated the waiter as he wrote it down.  He then walked off to go get their food.

"So, where are we going next?" asked Fiona.

"I don't know," answered Moonbay.  "I guess we'll walk around until we find something."

"How much money is left?" asked Van.

"A lot."

"I still don't think it's a good idea to use it all."

"What are you talking about?  Like I said, since we have this money, we should make full use of it."

"Won't Doctor D get mad?" asked Fiona.

"If he didn't want us to use it, he shouldn't have given us so much."

"Well, anyway, we still don't know where we're going next," reminded Van.

"Yeah yeah."  While they talked, Scarlet just stared out the window.  'What happened to me?  Who was that little girl in my dream…was she…me?'  Thoughts were running through her head faster than she could think.

"Hey Scarlet?" asked Fiona.  Scarlet turned away from the window and looked to Fiona.

"Yes?"

"Is something wrong?"

"No, not really."

"Hey, if you're still worried about the guy in that shop, don't be.  It's fine," said Moonbay.

"I know."  Just then, the waiter came with their food.

"Alright," cheered Van.  He dug in as soon as his plate was set in front of him.

"Van must be really hungry," said Scarlet.

"He's always like that," said Moonbay.

"Yep.  Everyday," said Fiona.

"Stop gaining up on me," said Van defensively.  They all ate their spaghetti quietly, popping jokes here and there.  They were soon done.

"That was great!  I want seconds!" shouted Van.

"I thought you didn't want to take advantage of the money," said Moonbay.

"Yeah, but I'm hungry," complained Van.

"Fine."

"Alright!"  Just then, the whole restaurant seemed to shake and the sound of explosions could be heard.  They all stood up and quickly ran out of the building.  When they got outside, what they saw surprised them.  There were 10 Rev Raptors attacking the town.

"No way," said Van in disbelief and anger.

"Aren't those Imperial zoids?" asked Fiona.

"Yeah, but they're probably part of some bandit group," said Moonbay.

"Why are they attacking the town?" asked Scarlet.

"Who knows, but we can't let them get away with it," said Van.  He began to run back to the town entrance and the others followed.  They soon made it to the Gustav.

"Hey Zeke," said Van.  Zeke knew exactly what Van wanted him to do and soon took off into the Blade Liger.  Soon after, Van and Fiona got in and headed off to fight the Rev Raptors.  Moonbay got in her Gustav.

"Come on Scarlet!" she yelled.

"Coming," she said as she ran over to the Gustav and got in.  They followed Van to the place where the Rev Raptors were.  They were just outside of the town.

"Here we go Fiona.  This is what I'm paid for," said Van.

"But you don't get paid."

"I know that.  I was using it as an expression."  The Rev Raptors stopped attacking the town when they saw the Blade Liger approaching.

"Looks like we got company," said the one who was most likely the leader.  "What do you say boys?  Let's give him a proper greeting."

"You got it," said the rest of the men.  They all turned towards the oncoming Blade Liger.

"Looks like they wanna fight," said Van.  "Alright then."  He kept charging for them.  Some managed to get out of the way, but one was rammed into a nearby rock.  The Blade Liger roared in victory.  The cockpit opened and the pilot ran out, looking panicked.

"What are you doing?!" yelled their boss, but the pilot kept running.  The Blade Liger went to go attack the others, letting the pilot run.  The Gustav stopped nearby and the cockpit opened.  Scarlet stood up and jumped out.  She began running towards the un-piloted Rev Raptor.

"Hey, where are you going?" shouted Moonbay, but she got no answer.  Scarlet ran up to the zoid and got into the cockpit, securing the safety harness and closing the cockpit.  In the Blade Liger, Van saw what was going on and brought up a com-link.

"Scarlet?" he asked.  "What are you doing?"

"Please, I want to help you."

"Are you sure you know how to pilot that?"

"Yeah.  I think so."

"But how will we know it's you?  All the Rev Raptors look the same," said Fiona.  Scarlet looked around the ground and found a blade from one of the Rev Raptors that Van had destroyed.  She bent down and picked it up.

"I'll be the Rev Raptor carrying a blade," she said.  She smiled to them.  "Don't worry, I'll be fine."

"Okay," said Van.  He charged at another one, taking it out, while Scarlet extended her blades and took out one as well.

"This isn't that hard," said Scarlet to herself.  A few more of the men were taken out.

"Darn it!" yelled their leader.  He opened a link with one of his men.  "Call for backup from the base."

"Yes sir, but I have a question.  Isn't that the zoid of Van Flyheight?" asked the man.  The leader took a better look at the enemy and then realized it.

"Darn, it is," he said.  He cursed under his breath and then looked back to the man.  "I don't care if he is part of the Guardian Force.  We'll take him out, now call for backup!"

"Right sir."  The man pushed a button.  "We need back up now."

"Right away," said the voice on the other line.  The transmission was turned off and the man began to concentrate on the battle again.  Just then, the man was taken out by Van, using the blades on the Blade Liger.

"Darn!" yelled the leader.

"What's wrong?" asked Van.  "Scared?"

"Never!"  Van extended the blades on the Liger and charged the leader, taking him down easily by sawing through the armor.

"Well, I'm guessing you were their leader," said Van.

"So what?"

"So now your troops have no one to follow."  Just then, a cloud of smoke could be seen in the distance.  The leader smiled.

"Now you're in for it.  I don't care if you are Van Flyheight, the man who beat the Deathsaurer."

"I see my reputation precedes me," interrupted Van.

"There's no way that you and that pilot over there can take care of all of those zoids."  Just then, Scarlet took out another zoid.

"Man, for not having any memories, not to mention the fact that she hasn't piloted a zoid in years, she's doing great," said Van.

"I know what you mean," agreed Fiona.  "Scarlet is doing great."

"Well, I guess we have no other choice but to take care of the reinforcements," said Van.  "Hey Scarlet, you with us?"

"Yes," she answered.  Both of them charged off into the oncoming 20 zoids.

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Yay!  I'm happy I finished this, cause it took me a really long time.  I'm sorry!  I've been having writers block.

Well, hope you enjoyed and I think I'll make the next one longer.

Audi^.^


	7. Rescue

Yes, yes, I know, it's been, like, an eternity since the last time I updated this one.  I'm really sorry about that and I promise not to do that ever again.  I think I finally have a good idea for this story, so I'm gonna go with it.

Disclaimer:  I don't own zoids, only the characters I create.

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Van and Scarlet soon came in contact with their enemy, fighting off as many as they could at once and dodging fire.  Needless to say, Van was having an easier time.

"Hey Scarlet, how ya holding up?" he asked.

"I'm fine."  Her Rev Raptor took a few hits, but she followed it up with an attack of her own.  She was able to put the blade down, since the reinforcements were black Rev Raptors, unlike the previous ones.  There were also a few Dark Horns.  They had taken down 5 of the zoids, but there were still 15 left.

"This is ridiculous," said Moonbay from her Gustav.

"I'll say," agreed Van.  "There's just too many."

"To your right," said Fiona, but Van couldn't respond in time and was hit from the side.  He quickly followed up with his blade attack, taking out the Rev Raptor.

"Man, this is hard."  Just then, one of the Dark Horns was taken out by shelling.

"Where's that gun fire coming from?" asked Van.

"Over there," pointed Fiona.  They looked and saw a Lighting Saix.  A com-link popped up and Irvine appeared.

"Hey.  I thought you could use some help," he said.

"You bet, but how did you find us?"

"Doctor D told me you guys came here, so I decided to follow."

"Well, it's a good thing you did," said Fiona.

"Now could you guys fill me in here?  Exactly what's going on and why is that Rev Raptor attacking the others?"

"That's Scarlet," said Van.

"Scarlet?"

"Yeah.  She insisted to help us, so she took an enemy zoid.  We think these guys are bandits."

"Makes sense.  Let's hurry this up."

"Yeah."  They both began to attack the enemy.  Moonbay and her Gustav weren't that far away.

"Hey Irvine, nice of you to come," she said.

"I know."  He just gave a cocky smile.  The battle ensued for a while.  Scarlet was having a few problems once the blades on the Rev Raptor broke.  She was now using her guns and the claws.  'Darn it.  This is harder than I thought it would be.  I guess I'm not as good as they said I was.'  She was too busy taking out one of the Rev Raptors that she didn't see the other that was charging for her.

"Oh no," she said to herself.  The blades of the enemy Rev Raptor hit and easily took out the zoid.  Her Rev Raptor toppled over and fell to the hard ground below.  A com-link popped up.  It was Van.

"You okay?" he asked.

"I think so, but I'm out of this battle."

"You need to get out of there," said Fiona.

"I know, but…"  She pushed a few buttons, but the cockpit wouldn't open.  "It's stuck."

"You sure?" asked Van.  Scarlet removed the restraints and tried to push the cockpit open, but that didn't work either.

"Yeah, I'm sure."

"Well, you can't stay there, or else you'll be an easy target."

"I'm aware of that, but there's nothing I can do.  How many more are there?"

"About 9 or so."

"That's not good.  You guys sure you'll be alright?"

"Yeah, we can handle it."

"That's good.  Then hurry up, okay?"

"Okay," said Fiona.  The com-link was shut off and Scarlet fell back in her chair.  She looked around, hoping that she wouldn't be attacked, but she was a sitting duck.  One of the enemy Rev Raptor approached her, aiming its gun at the cockpit.

"This'll finish you," said the pilot.  Scarlet just stared at the guns aimed towards her.  She definitely was scared, which was a whole new feeling all together.   The enemy was soon hit on the side from shelling.  Scarlet looked up to find the Lighting Saix.

"Irvine?" she questioned.  "I thought he hated me."  She smiled slightly, happy that he didn't hate her.  She knew what it felt like to be hated and she really didn't like the feeling.  The battle kept going and soon enough, all of the enemy zoids were out of the battle.

"Yes, alright!" cheered Van.  The cockpits opened to the Blade Liger, Lighting Saix, and the Gustav.  Zeke also defused with the Blade Liger and joined his master and friend.  They ran over to where Scarlet's Rev Raptor was.  Together, they all opened the cockpit hatch.  She jumped out the second it was open.

"Thanks you guys," she said.  She then looked to Irvine.  "Thanks Irvine.  You really saved me."

"Yeah, well, don't think anything's changed.  I still don't trust you."

"Just what is your problem?" asked Moonbay.  "Why can't you be even just a little nice to her, huh?"

"Save it.  I don't need any lectures."

"I think we should probably leave now," said Van.

"Why is that?" asked Fiona.

"That's why."  Van pointed to the not so far off town.  People had already gathered and were coming towards them.  The man in front looked like he was the mayor.

"I would like to say thank you for leading them away from our village," he said.

"You're welcome," responded Van, a smile still on his face.

"However, I would like to know something and I want the truth."  He turned to Scarlet.  "Are you really her?  Are you really Scarlet, the executioner?"  Scarlet hung her head, but then looked up to him.

"I'm not going to lie to you, so yes, I am."  Her eyes had gone back to that expressionless, yet partially sad look.  She wasn't smiling anymore.  The crowd of people began to whisper stuff about her, all of them seeming afraid.

"Hold on a second.  She just helped save this town.  You owe her," reminded Moonbay.

"Do not worry; we don't plan to do anything that would harm her.  We only wish for all of you to leave this town now.  We don't want another incident like this."

"You think that was our fault?" asked Fiona.

"No, but we don't want any more trouble, so please just leave here."

"Come on," said Irvine as he turned to leave.  "Let's just head back.  There's no point in talking to people like them."  He began to walk away back towards his Lighting Saix.  Moonbay went next, running up to Irvine.  The others followed shortly after.  They began heading back towards their zoids.

"Irvine, why do you insist that you hate Scarlet?"

"Because I do."

"But just then, you…"

"Don't get the wrong idea.  Just because I saved her life doesn't mean I've forgiven her.  I know you guys would have been mad if I had left her to die."

"Were you really thinking that though?  Letting her die?"

"Well…"

"I don't think you would have, even if you do hate her."

"Why is that?"

"Because I know you too well."

"Yeah, sure."  They all got in their zoids.  Scarlet sat in the Gustav with Moonbay.

"Hey, Moonbay?"

"Yeah?"

"You love Irvine, don't you?"  Moonbay nearly slammed on the brakes, but refrained from doing so.

"What makes you think that?"

"You're always talking to him and it's just the way you look at him.  I think he likes you too."

"We're just friends okay?  Van and Fiona talk all the time."

"They like each other too.  It's obvious."

"Well, yeah, I guess, but that doesn't mean anything."

"Did I say something wrong?"

"No, never mind."

"Okay."  They all silently headed back to the base.

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Sorry for not updating for such a long time.  I've been having problems with this fic.  I know this chapter was kinda short, but at least I update.  Remember to REVIEW.  I'll write more as soon as I can, k?

Audi^.^


	8. Questions

I'm soooo sorry this took so long.  I don't really have a reasonable excuse, since I have more free time than ever to write stuff.  I guess I just have a really bad case of writers block.  I know how this is gonna end, and I know a few parts in between, but that's about it.

Disclaimer:  I don't own Zoids.

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Scarlet wandered throughout the huge facility.  They were back from their shopping trip, which hadn't been too successful.  The town's people were all scared of her and didn't want her in town again.  This wasn't what was bothering her though.  It was the fact that she couldn't remember anything about it that bugged her.  She knew that she had done things in the past that could cause people to hate her; in fact, it was completely normal that they did and she accepted that.  It just pained her.  She didn't want to be hated, but then again, who would?

'Why?  Why me?' she asked herself.  She then turned the corner and found none other than Colonel Schubaltz.  He was on his way to meet Doctor D.

"Colonel," she called out.  He stopped walking and turned to face her.

"Oh, hello Scarlet," he said.  She ran up to him.

"Please sir, I need to ask you something."

"Alright."

"Do I…do I look familiar at all?"

"What?"

"Do you know who I am?  What my name is?"

"Why would I know that?"

"Around 12 or 13 years ago, you found a little girl in a destroyed city.  She had red hair and yellow eyes, like mine.  I need to know if you remember her name."

"Now that you mention it, I do remember finding a little girl like that, but I can't remember her name.  She was taken away the day after my group had found her"

"Oh.  Nerve mind then."

"Why?"

"Because I just thought that girl might have been me."

"Just don't worry about it.  You'll eventually get your memory back."

"I hope so."  She turned around and walked away from him, heading towards her room.  Karl kept walking towards the lab to find doctor D.  He eventually ended up there and walked in while the doctor was running a few experiments.

"Doctor D, I'd like to speak with you," said Schubaltz.

"I'm a little busy right now," he said as he read some of the data on the computer screen he was looking at.

"I think it's something that you'll want to see."

"All right then, but make it quick."

"Sure.  Come this way."  They both walked down a few halls and entered a large room where the zoids were being stored.  They opened another door that had an electronic lock.  After Karl punched in the code, the door opened and they both walked in.  He turned on the lights and in the room was what appeared to be a zoid.  It had blood red armor and black spikes down its back, but it was twisted, charred, and damaged in many places.  It would have been hard for anyone else to make out just what kind of zoid it was, but both knew quite well what it was and where it had come from.

"So I see you found it," said Doctor D, quite happy about this newest development.

"Yes.  It was close by where we found Scarlet.  It was buried under the dirt, so we didn't see it the first time."

"Why was it buried?"

"We don't know.  Whoever did it must have had a reason, because they sure did a thorough job of hiding it."

"Well, I'm glad that your team found this zoid.  It's truly remarkable."

"Do you think it can be repaired?"

"It may take a while, but I believe so.  All the important parts are still here, and those that are missing can always be replaced."

"How long will it take?"

"I'd say about a week, maybe a few days or so.  It depends on how fast my team can work and how soon we start on it."

"Do you think this will help us find out more about Scarlet?"

"It's possible.  We won't know until we fix it up and have her pilot it.  Until then, we'll keep trying to remind her about herself."

"Well, you should probably go back to your work now."

"Yes, I suppose I should."  They both left the room and locked the door behind them.  Doctor D went back to running his tests and Karl Schubaltz went off to go find his team.  They were going to go back to the excavation site and see if they could find anything else.

Meanwhile, Moonbay was in her room, lying on her bed.  She was thinking about earlier that day when Scarlet had asked her that question.  She blushed at the thought, but then shook it off.

"I don't know what she was talking about.  I don't love Irvine.  He's just my friend…who happens to be a guy…and can be really sweet sometimes…"  She shook her head again.  "What am I thinking?  I don't feel that way… or do I?"  All of her answers just led to more questions.  "This is so confusing!"  She turned to her side and closed her eyes, drifting off into a deep sleep.  It had gotten late and a lot of people in the base were all ready asleep, including Irvine, Van, and Fiona.  Doctor D was still running tests and by now, Karl and his team had left to go investigate some more, not to mention head back to their own base to get some sleep.  Eventually, even Doctor D got tired and ended up falling asleep.  The lights in the desert research center were out and everyone was in their rooms.  Scarlet was once again lying awake in bed, not wanting to go to sleep.

"I wonder if I'll ever remember anything," she said to herself.  She just lied there quietly, not doing anything, but the air in the room suddenly changed.  It felt heavier and she sat up.  It felt different in her room, as if someone else was there with her.  Another presence was in the room along with her and she didn't feel good about it.

'Scarlet…' whispered a snake like voice, only not as high.  She just looked around the room.  She knew she heard the voice, but it was different.  She didn't hear it in the room, but more like in her mind.  It scared her.

"Who…who are you?" she asked in a quiet and shaking voice.

'Scarlet…come to me.  We must continue what we started all those years ago.'

"What do you mean?"

'Come Scarlet.  Come with me and you will remember everything.'

"Everything?"

'Yes…you will return to your old self.'

"No.  I don't want to be like that anymore.  I don't want to kill anybody else.  There's too much blood on my hands and I don't want to add anymore."

'You can't escape it.  It's who you are.'

"You're wrong.  No one is going to tell me who I am but me.  I'll make the decision on my own.  Now go away."

'…I will never leave you Scarlet.  I'll will come back as many times as I have to before you give in.  It will happen eventually, you'll see.'

"Just shut up."

'Scarlet…'  The voice began to fade.

"I said shut up."

'Scarlet…I'll always be here.  You can't get rid of me.  Scarlet…'  And with that, the voice was gone.  The heavy feeling in the air lifted and the second presence was gone from the room.  Scarlet lied back down on her bed and closed her eyes.  'Did I really hear all that, or am I going insane?' she asked herself.  She dismissed the thought and cleared her mind, falling into a deep and somewhat peaceful sleep.

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Yeah, I know.  It wasn't all that long of a chapter, but at least it's something.  Now remember.  The more reviews I get, the quicker I may update this fic.  I promise it won't be another two months like last time; you have my word.  Now review!  And no flames.

Audi^.^


	9. Human

Merry Christmas!  This may be short, but that's only because I got a lot to write and I'm tired.

Disclaimer:  I don't own Zoids, only the characters I create and this fic.

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The next morning rolled around quickly and everyone began to crawl out of bed.  Fiona had to dump water on Van's head before he would wake up.  Doctor D and Colonel Schubaltz were sitting in the kitchen, waiting for everyone else to get there.

"So when are you going to start this little project of yours?" asked Schubaltz.

"What do you mean?  I've already started it."

"Already?"

"Of course.  I've got a team working in there as we speak."

"Why don't you tell Scarlet?"

"She's not ready yet.  That, and I want it to be a surprise."

"Okay."  Just then, everyone came into the kitchen and sat down at the table.  Van yawned before saying, "What's for breakfast?"

"We'll know as soon as they bring it out," said Moonbay.

"What are we going to do today?" asked Van.

"I don't know," said Fiona.  "We'll think of something."

"I hope so."

******

After breakfast, everyone went off to do their own things.  Doctor D and Colonel Schubaltz disappeared and no one knew where they ended up at.  They were monitoring the restoration of the Dark Spiner.  Van, Fiona, and Zeke were in the hanger, working on the Blade Liger.  Irvine was standing on the balcony outside, staring at the desert.

"You really surprise me sometime," said Moonbay as she walked towards him.  He turned around and looked at her.

"How so?" he asked.

"During that battle the other day.  You saved Scarlet.  Why?"  Irvine just shrugged.

"I don't know.  I guess because you guys would have gotten mad if I hadn't, and it's not like anyone else was close enough to help her at the time.  Exactly why is that so strange?"

"Because I thought you hated her."

"I do, but…it's just hard to hate her the way she is right now.  It's sad that a warrior of her skill can't remember anything.  You'd never guess she used to be a killer for the Empire."

"I know what you mean."  They just stood there, not saying anything, until a loud crash could be heard.

"Van, are you okay?" asked Fiona from inside the base.

"…ow," came Van's reply.

"Come on," said Irvine, as he and Moonbay walked back in to see what was happening.  When they got in, both broke out laughing.  Van had run into the clear door that led into the lab and Fiona finally walked down the stairs to open it for him.  He was lying on his back.

"It's not funny!" he said hotly.

"Oh yes it is," said Moonbay.

"I can't believe you," said Irvine.  Both were laughing.  After regaining their composure, they walked to the door.  They looked through and saw Scarlet in the lab, sitting at one of the computers.  It looked like she was working on something.  Van opened the door and they all walked in.

"Scarlet?  What are you doing?" asked Fiona as they got closer to her.

"I'm fixing this data.  It's wrong," she answered.

"What do you mean?"

"All of it.  My blood type, heart rate, all of it.  It'll all wrong.  It has to be."

"Why?" asked Moonbay.

"Because I'm not real!  I never was and I never will be!  I'm nothing but a soulless doll, born to fight.  If I'm not fighting, then I have no purpose here.  I'm just a puppet."

"Scarlet," said Fiona.

"No!"  She fell to her knees and began to shake.  A few tears escaped her eyes and fell to the hard floor.

"Come on," said Irvine.  "That's enough."  Scarlet stopped shaking and looked to him.

"W-what?"

"Don't you get it?  If you were nothing but a doll, then you wouldn't have emotions either, and right now, aren't you crying?  A doll could never do that."  Scarlet touched the teardrops that had stopped on her face.  She was indeed crying.  She stood up.

"I thought you hated me Irvine," she said without looking up.

"Don't get me wrong.  I do hate you, but not the way you are right now.  If you ever change back to the way you were before, mark my words; you won't live to see another day."

"I wouldn't want to ever go back to that life."

"You don't have to if you don't want to," said Fiona.

"What I wanna know is why Raven would attack you.  He was a follower of Prozen as well," said Moonbay.

"It's because Raven is the type that can't let anyone be better than him," answered Irvine.

"Was I better than him?" asked Scarlet.

"We don't know, but that's why he decided to fight you.  He wanted to be the strongest and saw anyone stronger than him as a threat.  He always has to be the best," answered Van.

"How did I end up with Prozen?"

"I can answer that," said Doctor D.  He and Schubaltz walked into the lab and over to the group.  "First off though, your parents were scientist, working on human genetics in order to create soldiers for war.  I'm guessing you were their first experiment and then they decided to keep you as their daughter."

"The town where they lived was attacked," continued Schubaltz.  "And that's where I found you when you were little.  Unfortunately, Prozen took you the next day and entered you in training.  He wanted to see if genetically created humans could operate zoids better than human born ones."

"Could I?"

"To a certain extent.  Then Raven beat you and Prozen gave up on the research."

"Oh.  So I'm the only one like me?"

"That's right," said Doctor D.

"So I'm all alone?"

"Come on, don't think of it like that," said Van.  "All of us are the same.  You're no different from us.  We're all people, right?"

"Of course," said Fiona.  Scarlet looked to all of them and then gave a weak smile.

"Yeah," she responded.  "We're all people."

"That's right, now come on," said Doctor D.  "Let's find something to do."

******

A man walked towards a huge mountain in the middle of the desert.  It was the same man who attacked the town, but was stopped by Van, Irvine, and Scarlet.  He walked up to the hard rock mountain.  He flipped up a loose stone to reveal a digital lock.  He punched in the code and part of the wall slid open, revealing a door.  He walked in and the door shut behind him.  He walked down the halls and came to two large doors, which he threw open.  He then stomped into the room and up to a man who sat in a chair at a desk.  He seemed to be impatient.

"Good to see you again soldier," said the man at the desk.

"Sir, I've got something to tell you."

"I take it you came back empty handed."

"Sir, please.  I need to tell you something."

"What is it?"

"It's about Scarlet.  She's alive."  This got the man's attention.

"Continue soldier."

"We fought against her at the town.  She was with some members of the Guardian Force, including Van Flyheight.  We weren't able to beat them, but…"

"But nothing soldier.  You didn't complete your job.  With failure comes punishment."

"Please sir, I didn't get to…"

"No excuses.  Take him away."  Two other men grabbed the guy and dragged him out of the room.  The man at the desk stood up and opened a window in his hidden mountain base.

"So Scarlet, you're alive.  It's hard to believe, but I'm glad you are.  This will make our research much easier."

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I'm done!  I finished something.  8 things to write and 1 and a half days to write them.  But I did it.

That's all for now!

Audi^.^


	10. Voices

Well, hi again.  I can't think of anything important to say right now.  I have a three-day weekend.  Is that important?  I'm still in my stage of writers block, but that's all right.  I'm gonna write stuff anyway…well, I'm gonna try to write stuff.

Ah heck.

Disclaimer:  See first chapter.

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Dr. D walked out of the hidden door in the hanger with a smile on his face.  It had been only two days since his crew had started working on the damaged Dark Spiner.  Colonel Schubaltz was standing in the hanger area.  He didn't have anything better to do at the time.  He turned around upon hearing Doctor D's footsteps.

"Well?  How's it going?"

"Everything's done.  They just finished.  Come see for yourself."  Karl and Doctor D walked through the secret door and into the compartment.  In the middle of the room stood the Dark Spiner.  It gleamed in the lights of the room, its sea green armor and black spikes giving it a menacing look.  It was a work of art.

"Amazing," said Karl.  "And in just two days."

"Yep.  They've been working around the clock to finish it up."

"When do you plan to tell Scarlet?"

"Hopefully today.  I want it to be a surprise though.  Who knows, maybe this will trigger her memories."

"Are you sure that's a good thing?"

"Are you starting to doubt her too?"

"No, but what happens if Irvine is right?  What if Scarlet really does become the killer she used to be?"

"Then we'll have no choice but to destroy her."

"Are you serious?  You would have them do that?"

"If it was necessary, yes.  Do you remember what it was like when she was in the Imperial army?  You worked with her, didn't you?"

"Yes, but I never saw her much.  Prozen took her not long after I brought her into the base.  He was familiar with her parents' research and wanted to put Scarlet to the test right away.  He began to train her as a zoid pilot.  It was just as he thought.  She progressed much faster than most her age.  She became a pro when she was 7."

"She's definitely good.  It's too bad it's been so long since she piloted her zoid.  I hoped she still remembers how."

"You know as well as I do that she does."

"Yeah."

"So when are you going to tell her?"

"Soon."

******

Just outside the base, about a mile or so away, a large group of zoids stood, waiting.  There was a Dark Horn in front of a ton of Rev Raptors and Helcats.  The pilot of the Dark Horn had the cockpit open and was looking towards the base with a pair of binoculars.

"Soon," he said as he stared towards the base.  He put down his binoculars and stood up.  He turned towards his troops and raised his hand.  "We'll be moving out soon."

"Yes sir," the soldiers responded.

"Kill anyone who gets in the way, but leave Scarlet alive.  Destroy everything else.  I don't want any witnesses."

"Yes sir."  The man turned back to stare at the base.  He jumped down from his zoid and stood on the cliff.  The sound of another cockpit opening was heard and the sound of someone jumping to the ground followed.  Footsteps echoed behind the general of the small organization.  A man walked up to him, wearing the standard Imperial military uniform.  He was a little shorter than the general, but then again, the general was taller than most men, having a height of 6'.  The young soldier stared at the base ahead of them.  He had short, golden, almost light orange, hair.  His eyes were dark brown and very deep.  The solemn look he had seemed out of place on his young face.  He only seemed about 19 or so.

"General, may I ask a question?"

"Yes, Lieutenant Reid.  What is it you want to ask?"  The general was extremely calm, but his voice had a tinge of iciness in it.

"What do you need Scarlet for?"

"I need her so that I can create more people like her."

"What do you mean, sir?"

"Scarlet is an artificially created human.  Her skill is far greater than any normal human being.  If I could create an army of people like her, I could control all of Zi."

"What would you do with all of Zi, sir?"

"Are you questioning my goals, Lieutenant?"

"No sir.  I'm sorry for intruding."

"That's alright.  Get back to your zoid."

"Yes sir."  Lieutenant Reid saluted and then turned to walk back to his zoid.

"Lieutenant."  The young man stopped.  "How would you like to be a commander?"

"I would be overwhelmed, sir."

"If you capture Scarlet unharmed, I will promote you to commander.  How does that sound?  Commander.  Doesn't it have a nice ring to it?"  Lieutenant Reid saluted.

"It sound great, sir," he responded.  He was doing his best to hide the ever-approaching smile that threatened to grace his features.

"You're dismissed."  The young man turned and got back into his zoid, closing the cockpit.  In the cockpit, he let his boyish smile free.  He looked like a child like that.  He was completely overwhelmed and probably would have cried out in joy.  His smile faded, however, when he thought about the battle that was ahead of them.  He couldn't get his title unless he captured Scarlet, but did he really want to do that?  The thought crossed his mind constantly.  His 'General' was going to use Scarlet to take over the world.  Scarlet may be artificial, but wasn't she also human?  Didn't she have emotions as well?  Lieutenant Reid shook his head, dismissing the thoughts.  He had a job to do, and no matter how much he disagreed with his leader's desires, he had to follow orders, and they included attacking the base that was in front of them.  The General climbed into his own zoid and gave the signal.  The zoids began to move out, heading towards the unsuspecting base.

******

Scarlet was sitting in the white lab room, looking over the data on the computers again.  She was trying to figure some things out, mainly about herself.  'Maybe if I look hard enough, I can jog my memory.'  Her typing suddenly ceased when the presence of another entered the room.  Scarlet looked around, but found no one.  However, the second presence was still there.

"Who's there?" she asked the empty room.

'…Hello again, Scarlet,' said the voice that had haunted her the other night.

"Leave me alone."

'I already told you.  I can't.  I will be with you always.  You can't run from me.  I'm your destiny.'

"You wish.  I don't even know you."

'But I'm close, Scarlet.  I'm closer than you realize, and soon enough, you'll find me.  I know you will.  You, yourself, are drawn to me.  No matter how hard you try to rid yourself of me, I will always come back…one way or another.'

"Who are you?!"

'…I'm a part of you who was locked away years ago.  However, I'm about to resurface, and you'll finally realize just who you truly are.  I'm going to return you.'

"Return me?"

'Yes, return you…return you to who you used to be.'

"What?"

'Soon, Scarlet.  Soon, you'll understand.'  The presence left the room, but right after, the sound of an explosion could be heard, and the base began to shake.  The enemy had finally found them, and there was no way out.  The only way to escape would be to attack, but none of them would be ready for the outcome of the battle.  Not one of them.

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Short, I know, but I couldn't think of any more right now.  I'm sorry for the two-month wait.  Really, I am.

I'll write more next time.

Audi^.^


	11. Relapse

Gomen ne, minna-san!  I didn't mean for it to take so long.  I've been…distracted, so to speak.  I'm also just really tired and out of ideas.  That, and my encouragement has disappeared, and without encouragement, I don't usually feel like writing.

Disclaimer:  I don't own Zoids.  Live with it.  You got nothing on me.

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"Who's attacking us?" asked Moonbay as the entire base shook from another explosion.

"We need to get to the hanger, now," said Van.  However, getting there would prove to be difficult.  The ceiling was starting to come down, making movement difficult.  Not to mention the constant shaking of the base.

"Where's Irvine?" asked Moonbay.

"I think he was on the balcony the last time I saw him," answered Fiona.  Dr. D and Colonel Schubaltz weren't there either.  Another person was also missing.  "Where's Scarlet?"

"I don't know.  I think she might be in the lab," said Van, having to shout over the explosions.  "Come on.  We need to get to the hanger."  And with that, the three of them began to walk cautiously towards the hanger, avoiding the rubble as it fell from the ceiling.

******

"What's going on?" asked Scarlet, not expecting to get an answer.  The ceiling was starting to crumble and the entire base was shaking.  She didn't know what to do.  Suddenly, somebody appeared in the doorway, stopping to look into the room.

"What do you think you're doing?" shouted Irvine.  Scarlet turned to look at him, a little shocked.  "Get out of there!"  Scarlet tried to move, but a piece of the ceiling fell in front of her, causing her to take a few steps back.  Unknown to her, a piece was also beginning to break above her.  "Watch out!" shouted Irvine.  Scarlet looked up in time to see the piece break, but there was no way she was going to be able to get out of the way.  She closed her eyes, awaiting the pain she knew she'd fell.

"You idiot!" shouted Irvine as he ran into the room and towards Scarlet.  She opened her eyes and looked at him.  He ran right at her and then grabbed her arm, shoving her out of the way.  They both landed on the floor.

"Hey, you okay?" asked Irvine.  Scarlet simply nodded.

"Thank you, Irvine."  He didn't say anything.  Instead he began to walk towards the door.  Scarlet followed him and then they both sprinted, running out of the room and down the halls, jumping over the debris when it was necessary.  Eventually, they reached the hanger, where Van was already getting into the Blade Liger, along with Fiona.  Dr. D and Karl were there as well, and so was Moonbay.

"Good to see you're both okay," said Moonbay.

"Yeah," said Irvine.  He looked around and soon found his Lightning Siax.  He ran over to the zoid and quickly began to climb in.  Scarlet watched as the zoid warriors made their way out of the base and out into the desert.

"Scarlet," said Dr. D, catching the girl's attention.  She looked at him.

"What?" she asked.

"I have a surprise for you."  He pushed a button on a small remote and a side panel opened up, revealing a magnificent looking zoid.

"The…Dark Spiner…" said Scarlet in awe.  'My zoid.'

"We recently finished the repairs on it, so get out there and help them."  Scarlet smiled and nodded.

"Okay."  She ran to the zoid and quickly jumped in.  She felt right at home in the cockpit and she quickly maneuvered the zoid out of the base and onto the battlefield.  Van and Irvine were already taking out enemy units.  There were hundreds of them.  "Alright.  Time to get to work," Scarlet said to herself.  She quickly got into the battle, using her guns and claws to rip up the zoids.  'I don't see what's so amazing about this zoid, though.  The way they spoke, I thought it was going to be more powerful than any zoid, but Van and his Liger seem to be just as powerful, if not more.  Maybe I'm not a…killer.  Maybe they were mistaken.'

Meanwhile, on the enemy's side, the soldiers were doing their best to stay in battle.

"General," said Lieutenant Reid.  A com-link popped up on the General's screen, revealing the brown eyed boy.  He had a very serious look on his face.  "What are your orders, sir?" he asked.

"Take your unit and go in.  They need help up there."

"Yes sir."

"Oh, and Reid?"

"Yes sir?"

"You don't need to call me sir so much.  My name is Zen, remember?  Zen Suetsu."

"Yes, General Zen."  Zen just sighed.  The boy would never learn.

"Don't get killed out there, you got that?  You're going to come back alive."  They young lieutenant seemed happy to hear that.  He was cared about.

"Don't worry, General Zen.  I won't die."

"Good."  And with that, the com-link turned off and the group began to move into battle.

Meanwhile, Van, Irvine, and Scarlet were doing a decent job of keeping the enemy away.  A lot of the enemy zoids, however, seemed to be heading towards Scarlet.  A few bullets flew at her and she was too busy to dodge them.  She winced as her zoids stumbled, but quickly regained balance.  "What's going on?  Why are they mostly aiming at me?" she asked herself.

'They want you, Scarlet.'  Her eyes went wide.  It was that voice again.  Why wouldn't it leave her alone?

"Leave me alone," said Scarlet.

'I already told you, I'm you.'

"No, you're not!  I'm me!"

'I am a part of you.  I've been waiting for this moment.  Everything is perfect.'

"Where are you?  Really?"

'I'm right here…with you.'

"No jokes!"

'This isn't a joke.  You're with me…right now…you're in me.'

"I'm…in you?"  Realization then struck her.  Her zoid.  The Dark Spiner was talking to her.

'Now it's time.'

"Time for what?"

'To take you back.'

"Back to where?"  There was a small moment of silence, until the voice finally answered.

'Back to who you were…the crimson dawn, the executioner…so many things you were called.'

"No!  I don't want to go back!"

'It's too late.  Now come…succumb to me.'  Scarlet suddenly felt her head pounding.  The pain was unbearable.

"No!  I won't go back!  I won't!"

'It's no use…you're too far gone…now come.'

"No," replied Scarlet.  Her voice was weakening.

'Awaken!'  And with that, her mind snapped.  Everything was a blur.  All she could see was the battle.  The destruction of zoid after zoid.  She didn't know why, but seeing this…excited her.  There was a certain, familiar rush that she got from the action, and she wasn't going to let the newfound emotion disappear just yet.  She was going to follow through with it.  A twisted smirk appeared on her face as she gripped the controls and began to charge forwards with unbelievable speeds, tearing into zoid after zoid with her claws and teeth.  The guns were no longer needed.

"Look at that," said Van.  "What happened?"

"She seems to have gotten the hang of piloting that zoid," answered Fiona.

"No, it's something else," added Irvine.  He tried to open a com-link with her, but it was impossible.  The system was jammed.  They could hear the screams from some of the pilots as their zoids were annihilated.  Scarlet had no mercy.

"Scarlet, stop it!" shouted Van, hoping that she would hear him.

"We don't have to kill them!" added Fiona.  After the zoids Scarlet was fighting were destroyed, her zoid stopped moving.  Over their com-links, they could hear maniacal laughter and it was only getting louder.

"This is great!" shouted Scarlet.  She looked down at herself, at her hands.  "I feel like a new person!  I love this rush!"  The smirk appeared on her face again as she turned to face the rest of the enemy.  "I need to kill some more," she said quietly and dangerously. 

"Scarlet, please stop!" begged Fiona.

"No!  This is what I'm here for!  I need to fight!  What's the point in fighting if you can't kill them?!  I won't stop now!  I've come too far.  They will all die!"

"No!  We don't need to kill them," said Van.

"Shut up!  I don't need to listen to you!"  And with that, the Dark Spiner was off again slashing through zoid after zoid.  The enemy was now running in retreat, but that didn't stop her.  "I won't let any of you get away!"  The Dark Spiner stopped running and just stood there.  The spikes on the back lifted and a huge gun unfolded from the back.  It looked like a laser gun.

"No way!" shouted Dr. D from the base.  He, Moonbay, and Karl were watching the battle.

"What is it?" asked Moonbay.

"That's a hybrid cannon!  I don't remember seeing that."

"It must have been buried deep within the zoid," said Karl.

"That gun has a lot of power," added Dr. D.

"What is she going to do?" asked Moonbay.

"Something's wrong," said Dr. D.

"What?"

"She's acting differently."

"This is almost the same as all those years ago.  She's completely lost her mercy," said Karl.  Just then, the gun started charging, giving off a yellow glow.

"No!" shouted Zen.  He quickly opened a com-link.  "Reid, get you and your men out of there!"

"I don't know if I can," he said back with panic in his voice.  Just then, the beam fired.  In that instant, everything was silent, but only for a split second.  The look on Zen's face was of pure terror as he watched his men fall victim to the beam.  Their screams were heard as each zoid was devoured.

"I'm sorry, sir," said Reid.  And with that, he was cut off.  All that was left after the beam vanished was pieces of zoids and Scarlet's laughter.

"That was invigorating," said Scarlet.  Everyone was in shock.  All of them could still hear the terrified screams ringing in their heads.

"Scarlet…just…" started Fiona, the tears brimming in her eyes.

"I don't believe it," said Van.

"She killed all those people…just like that," said Moonbay, the shock evident in her voice.

"She's going to go on a rampage," said Karl.  "She won't stop until she dies."

"But what could have done this to her?" asked Moonbay.

"It doesn't matter," said Irvine.  He was in his Lightning Saix, which was standing pretty close to them.  "We need to take her out now."

"Irvine!"

"Would you rather die?  She'll kill all of us if we don't stop her.  Do you see what she just did to those men?  She killed them all!  She's a cold blooded murderer!"

"No!" shouted Scarlet.  Everyone was silent as they turned in shock to the Dark Spiner, which was now shacking and swaying back and forth.  "I'm not!  I'm not a murderer!"  Inside the cockpit, Scarlet was holding her head in pain.  She had a terrible headache.  She quickly jammed her hand down on the cockpit release button and the cockpit opened.  She stumbled out and fell to the desert sands, still holding her head.  "I'm not…I'm not a murderer…I'm just…a…"  And with that, she fell over, unconscious as the others made their way over to the crimson haired girl.

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Wow…I wrote another chapter, and it was fun!  Yes, fun.  That's what I said.  I forgot how much I liked this fic.  Well, hope you enjoyed.  Sorry for the really long wait.

Audi^.^


	12. Aftermath

Howdy.  I decided to update this too.  Tada!  Aren't you happy?  Well, I'm here, wishing you all a happy Independence Day.  I wasn't sure if I would be able to finish my update, ya know?

Well, enjoy!

Disclaimer:  I do not own Zoids.  I do own Scarlet and Lieutenant Reid, though, and I must say, I'm happy that I do.

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Scarlet's eyes opened slowly.  Her vision was blurred and all she could see was white.  Once her eyes focused, she realized she was in the lab at the base.  She suddenly remembered the battle.

"What happened?" she asked aloud.

"We were in a battle," answered Fiona.  Scarlet looked around and found out that all of them were there.  She gave a relieved sigh.  'Everyone's safe.'  She suddenly remembered what had happened.  Flashes of the battle passed through her mind.  It was horrible.  She soon closed her eyes and grabbed her head.

"Make it stop," she said in pain.  Van, Fiona, and Moonbay ran over to her side.

"What's wrong?" asked Moonbay.

"I…can see it all…the battle…oh gods, what have I done?"

"It wasn't your fault," said Van.

"It was.  I wasn't strong enough to resist that voice.  It kept calling out to me."

"What voice?" asked Dr. D, who came up behind her.

"It said…it was…the Dark Spiner."

"So it was the zoid," assumed Karl.

"No…it wasn't just the zoid.  The only thing that voice did was…was…"

"What is it?" asked Fiona.

"It stirred something within me…something I've been able to feel since the day I showed up here.  There's something inside of me, and I'm scared of it.  It's that feeling.  The feeling of…nothing."

"How can you feel…nothing?" asked Van.

"It's hard to explain.  It's like being free, but I…I don't want to feel it anymore, but I know it's there.  It's waiting to be awakened, and I'm afraid that if I go back into battle, I won't be able to suppress it.  I'll become a killer again.  I don't want it to happen.  I don't want to be a murderer.  I just want to be me."

"It's not something you can escape from," said Irvine, shoving away from the wall he had been leaning on.  "It's a part of you.  You can't just get rid of it.  You're a zoid warrior.  A warrior like you will be like that until the day they die.  It'll be with you always.  You can't get rid of something that is a part of you."

"Irvine!" shouted Moonbay.  "Stop scaring her like that."  He seemed to ignore her.

"But that's why you have us," continued Irvine.  "We're here to help you get over that.  We're here to make you forget.  You may not be able to rid yourself of it, but you can chose to ignore it."  They all smiled, but Moonbay's was the largest.  'Irvine…you're finally showing us your sensitive side.'  Scarlet was in shock.  'I…thought he hated me,' she thought to herself.  'Was I wrong?'

"Irvine?  Thank you.  I'll try to suppress it."

"Well," interrupted Dr. D.  "I think there's something we can do about this problem.  I can just reprogram the Dark Spiner."

"You can do that?" asked Van.

"Of course.  It'll be easy," he bragged.  "Let's get to work."  Dr. D walked off towards the hanger area of the base to work on the Dark Spiner.

"Maybe we should also fix up our zoids," suggested Van.  They all decided to head towards the hanger.  Karl decided to head off to the other section of the lab.  There was something else he wanted to do.  Scarlet stayed by herself in the lab, on the couch like bed she was sitting on.  'What do I do?  What if it happens again?  Could they really help me?'

******

The desert floor was covered in zoid metal from the recent battle.  Scarlet, no, the executioner, had destroyed every last one of them.  Zen was the only one who had lived, since he didn't take part in the battle.  He had left soon after it.  He didn't want to think about what had happened.  He didn't want to relive it.  He had lost them all.  Most of his men were gone, and he had lost Reid.  He had lost the one boy he could consider family, even if he was too formal.

However, there were footprints on the sand, leading away from where the battle had been.  Those footprints were heading towards a far off base.  In the desert, a single man was walking through the heat.  His uniform was tattered and torn and his hat was gone, revealing his slightly spiked, golden hair.  It was hanging over his eyes, hiding them from the sun.  He was holding onto his right shoulder as a small stream of blood ran down his arm.  There was a cut on his face as well that ran down his left cheek.  He wanted nothing more than to collapse right there, but something kept him going.  He didn't want to die right now.  The will to live was just too powerful for him to give in.  However, his body had been pushed to its limits and he couldn't take much more of this beating he was receiving.  He suddenly collapsed onto the sandy ground, dust flying around him.  He just needed to rest for a while.  His body went numb and the darkness eventually took him.

******

"Hand me that wrench, will you?" asked Van.

"Sure."  Fiona tossed down a wrench and Van easily caught it.  They were working on the Blade Liger.  Zeke sat not far away, watching them work.  Suddenly, he lifted his head and looked out to the desert.  The hanger door was wide open, since it was hot and the air conditioner wasn't working.  It's not like the desert was any better, but any ventilation was better than none.  Zeke's eyes narrowed.  He soon rose and began to head out into the desert.

"Hey, Zeke!  Where are you going?" shouted Van, running after him.  Fiona followed both of them and they all ran out into the desert.

"Hey, where are you going?" shouted Irvine.

"I think Zeke saw something out there.  We're going to check it out."

"I'll come with you," said Irvine, jumping down from his zoid.  He ran after the trio, out into the desert.

"Zeke!  Where are we going?" whined Van.  He couldn't see anything out here.  Suddenly, a figure could be seen.  It appeared to be a young man.  Zeke stopped when he reached him.  Van and Fiona got there after him, and Irvine arrived not long after.

"So, what'd you find?" asked Irvine, but he then saw what Zeke had been going after.  The man on the ground seemed about their age.  He was lying in the sand, unconscious.

"Is he…dead?" asked Fiona.  Van shook his head.

"I don't think so."  He bent down and picked up the man's wrist.  Luckily, there was a pulse.  "He's alive," sighed Van.  Fiona smiled.

"We should take him back to the base," said Irvine.  "He'll die out here."  Irvine turned around and began to head back to the base.

"Hey Zeke, could you take him back?" asked Van.  Zeke roared and then bent down to pick up the man.  They all walked back to the base.

******

The young man slowly opened his brown eyes.  He was lying on a bed in a nicely lit room.  The walls were brown and the ceiling was white.  It was very relaxing inside.  He lifted his hand and placed it on his forehead.  He had bandages on his cheek and wrapped around his head.  'I guess I had more injuries than I thought I did,' he thought to himself.  His right arm had been bandaged as well.  His shirt was lying on the floor.  He then noticed that his chest was covered in bandages.  He tried to sit up, but a surge of pain erupted from his wounds and he was forced back down to the bed.  He sighed and then just lied there, staring at the ceiling.  Suddenly, the door slid open and in walked two people, a boy and a girl.  The young man raised his head to look at them.

"I see you're awake," said the blond haired girl.

"I am.  May I ask who you are?"

"I'm Fiona, and this is Van."

"Van?  As in Van Flyheight?"

"Yes," responded Van.

"Amazing.  I've always wanted to meet you."  He tried to sit up, but fell back down again, due to his injuries.

"Are you alright?" asked Fiona.

"I think so," he responded.  Suddenly, Irvine and Moonbay appeared in the doorway as well, followed by Dr. D and Karl.  The room was soon full with people, who had questions to ask the young man.

"Hello.  I'm Dr. D.  If you don't mind, I have a few questions I'd like to ask you."

"Sure."

"First off, it'd make this easier if I knew your name."

"Oh, sorry.  I'm Saigo Reid.  Just call me Sai."

"Alright then, Sai.  Can you explain this uniform?"

"It's from the Empire."

"What were you doing in the desert?"

"I was in a battle.  I got injured, so I went looking for help, but I collapsed in the middle of the desert."  The door suddenly opened and in the doorway stood Scarlet.  All eyes turned to her.  She seemed drained.  Her eyes were empty again, the way they had been when they had first met her.  Her golden eyes shifted to the man who was lying on the bed.

"It's you," Sai said while he looked at her.  "The crimson dawn."

"No," she responded.  "Scarlet.  I'm Scarlet.  Please…don't call me by those names."  Sai simply nodded.  'If Scarlet is here, then that means…these are the people we fought against…what should I do?'  "Who are you?" she asked him.  Sai was knocked out of his thoughts.

"I…I'm Sai.  I…have something to tell you, but please, don't kill me."  All eyes fell upon him.  "I was a member of that group you fought.  I was that squads leader."  They all looked slightly shocked.  "I'm sorry.  Please don't kill me, I beg you.  I'm sorry, Scarlet, I'm sorry!  I don't want to die."

"Relax…I won't kill you…I would never…"  He just stared at her, as if judging her.  'What does she mean?  Can I really trust her?'

"Well, Sai, you should get some sleep," said Dr. D.  "You're injuries need time to heal.  You'll be safe here.  Don't worry."  And with that, they turned around and left the room.  Scarlet, however, came further in.  Sai sat up, ignoring his pain.  He was stronger than that.

"Don't come any closer," he said to her.  Scarlet stopped walking.  "When I was younger, they used to tell stories about you.  You're about the same age as I am, but you were a warrior long before I even touched a zoid.  You slaughtered hundreds of people, perhaps thousands.  And you expect me to just forgive you after you took so many lives?"  He glared at her.  There was a hatred in his eyes, but also a certain kind of fear.  He was trying to be strong through all of this.  Scarlet just hung her head, allowing her bangs to hand over her eyes.

"I'm sorry.  I'll understand if you can't forgive me, but know this."  She raised her head, tears brimming in her golden eyes.  "I don't plan to kill again.  I didn't mean to…to…"  He just held her gaze, waiting for her to finish her explanation.  "…Never mind.  I'm sorry to bother you."  She bowed once and then left the room, the door sliding behind her.  Sai lied back down on his soft bed and stared at the ceiling.  "What would General Zen say if he knew I was with the enemy?  Is he still alive, or was he, too, wiped out in that blast?  I wonder…"  He closed his eyes.  "Either way, it looks like I'm stuck here for a while."  And with that, he allowed himself to fall asleep peacefully.

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Done!  Wow, that was an interesting chapter.  I hope you like it.  I'm going to update more often, alright?  I rpomise.

Well, until then!

Audi^.^


	13. Links

Well, I'm on a writing streak right now.  I felt like writing this, so I did.  And it felt so good^.^  So here ya go.  Enjoy the chapter^.^

Disclaimer:  I don't own Zoids, but I do own Scarlet, Sai, and a few other random people and things.  Don't sue me, k?

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Everyone sat in the lab area, trying to figure out what they should do with their newest guest.  Saigo was in his room.  He wasn't allowed to move with his injuries.

"So, what should we do with him?" asked Van.  Doctor D was the first to speak up.

"I think we should let him stay here until he heals," he said.

"I agree," said Fiona.  "He can't really do anything as long as he's injured.  We'll keep him here and take care of him."

"Even if he's our enemy?" questioned Irvine skeptically.

"He may be our enemy, but right now, he needs our help, so I say we help him for now," said Moonbay.  "And if he turns on us after that, then we'll teach him a lesson."

"Sounds good to me," said Van.  All eyes were now on Scarlet, who was being very quiet.

"Scarlet, what do you think?" asked Fiona.  Scarlet looked up and met their intense gaze.

"I agree with all of you.  I really want to help him, since I…I feel responsible for what happened to him."

"Very well then," said Doctor D, standing up.  "He'll stay here until he's healed.  Then, he can do what he wants."  They all nodded.  The rest of them stood up as well.  Their zoids still needed to be repaired and there were other jobs to do around the building.  It needed a lot of fixing up, since the structure took quite a bit of damage.  Irving, Van, and Fiona went to work on the zoids, Doctor D went to reprogram the Dark Spiner, and Moonbay, Scarlet, and Karl all went to work around the base.

******

Saigo Reid sat up in his bed, wondering about his General.  He needed to know if he had made it out alive or not.  Just then, he noticed that Scarlet passed by his room.

"Scarlet, wait!" he called out.  She stopped and went back to his room.  She stopped in the doorway and looked in on him.

"What is it?" she asked blankly.

"I was wondering if you happened to see a Dark Horn during the battle."

"…Yes, I did."

"Was it…"  he hung his head and lowered his voice.  "Was it…destroyed during the battle?"

"…No.  I didn't…destroy it."  Saigo sighed in relief.

"That's good," he said.  "Then General Zen is still alive."  Scarlet's eyes widened at the name.  She gripped the doorframe hard with her right hand, which was resting on the wood of it.

"Zen?  As in Zen Suetsu?" she asked.  Sai looked up at her, his eyes slightly wide.

"You know about…General Zen?"  Scarlet gripped the frame harder now, her eyes filled with terror.  Her mind began to flash with images of the man they were speaking about.  He had been present whenever experiments were done concerning her.  She would never forget his face.  Her head began to pound from the strain of the images.  She still was having a hard time remembering things.  She fell to her knees and held her head in pain.  'Make it stop!' her mind screamed.

"Hey," said a soft yet firm voice.  A hand reached out and touched her shoulder.  Scarlet opened her eyes and looked into the dark brown eyes of Lieutenant Reid.  "Is something wrong?" he asked her.  Scarlet simply shook her head and rose from the floor.

"I'm sorry, I just…"

"It's alright, you don't have to explain.  I understand.  It happens to me sometimes too."

"It…does?"

"Yeah.  There are times when I'll collapse from a headache, or when too many things are running through my head at once, or when I try to remember things."

"So you're missing some memories as well?"

"Yeah."  He stood up as well, a little slower than Scarlet had, due to his injuries.  He cringed slightly, but managed to stand up.

"You should still be in bed," said Scarlet.  "Your injuries haven't healed yet."

"I know, but sitting around is boring."

"Sai…does this mean…you're not mad at me anymore?"  Sai blinked a few times, confusion on his face.  'Does it?' he questioned himself.  'I'm having a normal conversation with her.  I guess it does.'

"Yeah, I guess," he said, scratching the back of his head.  Scarlet smiled a genuine smile.

"That's good to hear," she said as she turned around.  "Now, I have work to do, so I'll see you later."  She walked out the door and down the hallway.  Sai just stood there for a while.  His injuries hurt, but he didn't want to just sit there.  He decided to head for the hanger.

******

Scarlet walked towards the lab area of the base, thinking about her conversation with Sai.  'Zen Suetsu.  His real name is Zenshou Suetsukata, a name given to him by Prozen himself.  Prozen knew then that this man would be similar to him.  Zen…are you even aware of what Prozen had in store for you?  Just what have you told Sai?  I find it hard to believe you would lie to a man who holds such a high respect for you.  If you keep pretending, then you'll only hurt Sai.  Either way, you're going to end up hurting him in the end.  Poor Sai.  He's so much like me.  Both of us are having a hard time remembering things.  Is this also your fault?  Did you do something to him?  Zenshou Suetsukata.  Your name means nothing good at all.  I wonder what your real name was.  Zenshou…complete destruction, and Suetsukata…end of the world.  Are you even aware of this?'  She shook her head and continued walking down the hall.  'All this thinking isn't helping my headache.  I think I'll just stop thinking for now.'

******

Sai walked into the hanger where Van, Fiona, and Irvine were.  They were making the final repairs on their zoids.  Sai limped into the room, holding his stomach.  He still had his gray colored pants on, but his shirt was open and hung off his shoulders.  His messy, golden hair was slightly dusty, but he didn't mind much.  Fiona was the first person to notice him.

"Hello, Sai," she said.  Van and Irvine both looked to the young man as well.  Sai just nodded and walked over.

"Well, shouldn't you be resting?" asked Van.  Sai just smiled lightly.

"I probably should be, but I got bored.  I actually wanted to ask you something.  Did all of you decide on, well…"

"On what to do about you?" asked Irvine.  Sai nodded.

"Yeah," he said quietly.

"Well, we've decided to let you stay here, even if you were our enemy," said Fiona, a smile on her face.  Sai smiled as well.

"That's great," he said cheerfully.

"So Sai, what will you do after you heal?" asked Van.

"I'm not sure, exactly," he answered.  "I guess I'll go back to General Zen.  He told me to stay alive, and I did.  He probably thinks I'm dead, though."

"Why do you want to go back?"

"Because Zen is the only person I have.  I've known him for as long as I can remember."

"How long is that?" asked Irvine.

"I…I don't know.  Three, four, six years, maybe?  I really don't remember."

"So you have amnesia?" asked Fiona.

"I don't know.  I mean, I see things sometimes…they might be memories, but I don't know.  I'm not sure which memories are mine anymore."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's alright," he said, the smile returning to his face.  "I'll be fine.  It doesn't bother me much anymore."

"That's good."  Van had gone back to working on his Blade Liger.  Zeke sat at its feet, resting.  Sai walked over to the organoid and studied it.

"This is an organoid, right?" he asked.  Van looked down at the man and smiled.

"Yep.  His name is Zeke.  He's the one that found you," answered Van.

"Well then, I suppose I owe him my life."  Zeke's head rose from the floor and he stared at the Lieutenant in front of him.  Sai just stood still and stared at Zeke.  The organoid roared once and stood up.  He studied Sai for a while.  'I wonder…' thought Sai.  He reached up and touched Zeke's metallic face.  'So this truly is…an organoid.  He seems so different from what I was told.'

"Well, it looks like Zeke likes you," said Fiona, a smile on her face.  Sai also smiled.  'These people are all so nice to me, even though I tried to kill them.  How can they be so forgiving?'  He frowned at the thought and turned to face Fiona, Van, and Irvine.

"I don't understand," he said.  "How can all of you be so forgiving?"

"What do you mean?" asked Van.

"I tried to kill all of you out there.  Don't you even care?"

"It's in the past," answered Fiona.

"But I plan on going back when I'm healed."

"It's alright.  We really don't mind any of that.  We know there's a possibility that we might have to fight you again, but right now, you can stay here with us."

"I just…"

"We accepted Scarlet, didn't we?  You're not any different," answered Van.  "She used to be a killer, and we know that she could eventually return to that life, but for now, she's staying here."  Sai was silent for a while.  He looked around the hanger and then at Van and Fiona.  Irvine was basically ignoring them.  Zeke nudged him in the back.  'These people are all so nice.  Why?'

"How can you be so trusting?  I'm still your enemy, you know.  How is it that you can trust me without even knowing me?"

"I don't know," said Van honestly.

"We just do, that's all," finished Fiona.  "You seem like a good person."  Sai smiled inwardly.  'Maybe these people…really can be my friends.  Who knows?'  

The rest of the day went by rather routinely.  Everyone seemed to enjoy having Sai there for now, and he was enjoying his stay with them as well.

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Well, the next chapter will be up soon.  Actually, chapter 14 was supposed to be chapter 13, but it just didn't work out right.  I wanted to get a little more into Sai before the story deepens.  That's all^.^

Remember to click the little blue button and tell me something nice^.^

Bye for now! 


	14. Condition

Um…unfortunately, I didn't put this up as soon as I said I would.  I just wasn't motivated to do so, sorry to say.

Anyway, things will get a little more confusing here.  You'll find out a little more about Sai and what happened to him.

Disclaimer:  I don't own zoids, but I do own a few characters in here.

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General Zen walked through the ruins of what was once his army.  Many of his soldiers had been wiped out during the battle with Scarlet.  However, he was only looking for one person.  He was looking for the young Lieutenant Reid.  However, he wasn't having much luck finding him.  Zen picked through piles of twisted metal, searching.  He still found nothing.  No one was left.  The sound of his men crying out for their lives filled his ears.  The last words of Reid had been nothing more than a simple apology.  Zen hated that.  Reid had no reason to apologize.  Zen still had faith in the boy.  He wouldn't die that easily.  Zen sat down near his zoid and sighed.  He thought back to about 7 years ago.  He had been a soldier in the empire for a long time.  Nine years ago, he was 21 and very foolish.

/Flashback/

The town around him was burning, but he wasn't afraid.  In fact, he had been the one who had started it.  The young captain of the Imperial army, Zen Suetsu, was standing in the middle of the burning town.  He looked around for survivors.  Indeed, his unit had started the fire, but he was still looking for civilians who might have survived.

"Mother!"

The cry caught his attention.  He turned around and saw a boy around the age of eleven.  He was kneeling near a woman, blood all around her.  The boy was also covered in blood, some his own and some his mother's.  The captain walked over to him and stood behind him.

"Hey," said Zen.  The boy tensed and turned around to face the man.  His eyes were wet with tears, which mixed in with the blood on his face.  The captain knelt down so that he was at eye level with the boy.  The boy looked slightly scared, and Zen took pity on him.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you," he assured the boy.  "Tell me, what's your name?"

"I-it's Saigo.  Saigo Reid."

"Well, Saigo, let's get out of here.  This wrecked village is no place for a boy like you."

"But I…my mother…"

"I'm sorry about your mother, truly I am, but you can't stay here.  Come on.  I'll take you somewhere where you'll be safe."

"I don't know…"

"It's alright.  I promise you'll be okay.  How about this?  I'll train you to become a zoid pilot."

"A zoid pilot?"

"That's right.  What do you say, huh?"  He gave Saigo a warm smile, which caused the boy to smile slightly as well.  He stood up and so did Zen.  "Come along then.  Let's get going."

"Okay."  Zen took the boy's hand and walked with him out of the village.

/End Flashback/

'After that, I raised Saigo to be an amazing zoid pilot, but he never quite warmed up to me the way I wanted him to.  I was hoping he would see me as more than his superior officer.  Perhaps more like a brother, or a father, instead of his General.  That stupid boy.  He just had to go off and get himself killed.  I suppose this is the price I pay for getting too close to someone.  He doesn't even realize what he really is.  In some ways…he's no different from her.'  Zen stood up from his place on the sand and walked to his zoid.  He got in and headed back towards his base.

******

Sai opened his eyes and saw nothing but bright lights.  His head was throbbing.  He squinted to try and block some of the light.  A familiar and sickening sent entered his senses and he cringed.  It was blood.  It was the iron like smell of blood.  He looked around and noticed that he was in a laboratory room, made of dark metals.  He hated the sight of it.

"Where…am I?" he asked.  He was only about 16.  He hated the idea of being alone.

"You're in the lab," answered a man in a lab coat.  He wore black glasses to conceal his eyes and to block the light.  Sai looked at the man and then looked down at himself.  He noticed that he was only wearing a pair of pants.  His shirt was gone.  There were lines drawn on his chest, as if it was a map to an operation.  His eyes filled with horror.

"What's going on?" he asked in a panic.

"Relax, Mr. Reid.  Everything will be fine."

"Like heck it will," he shouted back.

"We are simply going to modify you.  Over the years, your body has weakened, and we are simply going to fix it."

"Don't you dare touch me!  Let me out of here!"

"It's no use."  The man walked over to Sai and pulled out a scalpel.  "It's time to begin."  A hand placed a gas mask on Sai and he couldn't help but breathe in the fumes.  His whole body began to feel numb, but he continued to watch as the blade came down on him, cutting his soft skin.

******

Sai shot straight up, a cry of terror leaving his mouth as he did so.  However, he stretched his wounds and cried out in pain before falling back.  He could feel his wounds rip and bleed.  He was breathing hard, his eyes closed.  It was late and everyone was asleep.  'What was that?  Was it a nightmare…or a memory?  I don't remember.'  He placed his hand near his stomach and touched the wet bandages.  He pulled his hand away and looked at it.  It was covered in blood.  His eyes were wide at the sight.  He then felt sick.  He began to cough, covering his mouth with his other hand.  He rolled to his side, trying to stop the pain in his chest as he coughed.  He stopped and removed his hand.  He saw blood there and he could taste it in his mouth.  It had that iron taste that made him feel even sicker.  He began coughing again and he rolled a little further, falling off the bed and onto the floor.  His door was open, letting in some light.  He could see specks of blood on the floor.  'What's happening?' he pondered.  He tried to get up, but stumbled and crashed into the wall.  He fell forwards again, still coughing as pain seared through his damaged body.  It was just too much for him.  'Someone help me.'

"Sai!" cried out two voices.  He recognized them instantly, but he couldn't see them.  He was still coughing and he felt horrible.  The people ran over to him and knelt by his side.  They were Van and Fiona.

"Sai, are you alright?" asked Fiona.  Sai could do nothing but cough into his hand.  Once his coughing fit was over, he removed his hand from his mouth, only to find it covered in blood.  Van and Fiona both seemed to gasp at the sight.

"What's going on?" asked Doctor D, who came running into the room with Karl, Irvine, Moonbay, and Scarlet behind him.  Sai's eyes were wide as he stared at the blood.  'It's happening again…but I don't understand…I don't…remember…anything.'  After completing that thought, he coughed a few more times.  Afterwards, he began to feel dizzy and passed out on the floor of his room.

******

"So, just what's wrong with him, gramps?" asked Van.  They had left the base and went to the hospital in the nearby town.  The doctors instantly took in Sai and began to work on him.  Everyone else sat in the waiting room.  Van and Fiona were both worried for their new friend, while Irvine seemed slightly bored.  Moonbay seemed worried, yet not as much as Van and Fiona were.  Karl just sat quietly, waiting, while Scarlet had fallen asleep in a chair after pacing for nearly an hour.  Doctor D just sat down and sighed.  He had recently talked to a doctor about Sai and had heard what was going on.  He had been allowed to come in, since he was, of course, the famous Doctor D.

"I'm afraid that none of the news is good.  First off, all this moving around has reopened his chest wound, and because of the battle he was in, he ended up with a few internal injuries as well.  Besides that, he has some kind of disease that not even the doctors have seen, so they can't treat it now.  Also, it seems he's had it for quite some time now, and they're surprised he's still alive.  This disease is so strange, since he seems perfectly fine, it's just…I don't know.  This is all so confusing," he said as he put his hands on the sides of his head.  Even Doctor D was getting stumped.  "Besides that, they found a strange trace of metal in his blood.  It seems that he has a metallic form of Zoid magnite in his blood system.  The strangest part is it's the same with Scarlet."  They all gasped at this.

"So Sai was also created?" asked Fiona.  Doctor D shook his head.

"No, he wasn't created.  The metal was injected into him.  He has the scars to prove it."

"Why would somebody do that to him?" asked Van.

"I'm not sure.  Whoever did it wanted to improve his physical strength.  It's possible that this is what caused him to get sick."

"But he's been fine up until now," pointed out Irvine.  "Why is this affecting him now?"

"That's what they're trying to figure out.  It's all so confusing.  According to them, he should have died long ago.  All the battles he's been in have taken their toll on him.  His body is weak right now and the disease is taking advantage of that."

"So just what are you saying?" asked Moonbay.  "Does this mean he has no hope in living?"

"Well…the only way to save him will be to enhance the metal in his blood.  Unfortunately, this is a painful process.  I'm surprised anyone would do this to him in the first place.  Even if you're basically numb at the time, the pain is still great.  The doctors are waiting for him to wake up to see what he wants to do about this.  They would never do an operation like this without his consent."

"So in other words, Sai still might die," said Scarlet.  She had woken up recently and had been listening to the conversation.

"In short, yes.  He doesn't have much of a chance at surviving this," answered Doctor D.  Scarlet turned her eyes to the floor.

"This is all my fault," she said quietly.

"Why do you say that?" asked Karl.

"He wouldn't be injured if I hadn't tried to kill him.  His injury is only making his condition worse.  If it hadn't been for me, he would have been…"

"Scarlet, it's not your fault he's like this.  It's the people who did this to him," said Van.  Even though they had only known Sai for a day, they all felt a deep hatred towards the person who had done this to him.  Anyone who would surgically enhance a person by cutting them open and experimenting on them, plus injecting metal into their blood, deserved to be punished badly.  And they would make sure they took care of it personally.

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Confusing, ne?  How about I unconfused it.

Sai's condition:  Sai and Scarlet both have zoid magnite in their blood, but scarlet was created like that where as Sai was altered when he was sixteen.  Because of the enhancements, he suffers from an incurable disease that could kill him if the zoid magnite isn't enhanced again.

Does that help at all for those who were confused?  I'll try to explain it a little more in the next chapter.  I needed that little recap too, cause I was confusing myself for a while.

Anyway, I'll update near Thanks Giving, so look for it.

See ya!


	15. Decision

Happy holidays!  I hope you enjoy the chapter^.^

Disclaimer:  I don't own Zoids.

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Sai opened his eyes, the bright lights of the room blinding him.  What had happened again?  He recalled his nightmare and then the headache.  He had been coughing up blood.  His disease…he remembered.  It wasn't the first time this had happened.  He had gotten sick in the presence of Zen before and the general had helped him.  The process had been painful, but he didn't remember much of it.  In fact, he didn't remember a lot of things.  He began to look around, trying to limit his movement, since his head still hurt.

"Hey," said a voice from his right.  He turned slightly and saw Van and Fiona standing there.

"How do you feel?" asked Fiona.  Sai wanted to say something, but he couldn't.  His voice wouldn't work.

"Dr. D told us about what happened," said Van.  "He mentioned an operation that can be done to save you, but it'll be painful."  Sai cringed.  He'd have to go through it again.

"They'll have to do it soon, but we need your consent to okay it," explained Fiona.  "Is it alright with you?"  Hesitantly, he nodded.  He wanted to live, even if it would be painful.

"Okay.  We'll see you again right before you go under, alright?"  He nodded again and they left the room, leaving him alone again.  He hated this.  That procedure would hurt and he knew it.  He wasn't sure why it hurt or what went on during it, but he hated it.  Why did he have a disease like this?  He thought back to his dream.  Had it been a dream or a memory?  Had that really happened to him?  He had been in so much pain.  His whole life had been full of pain and that was about all he remembered of it.  Zen was the only one who had ever cared about him, but now there were these people.  The people who had taken in an enemy and nursed him back to health.  The people who had taken him here and were now going to wait until he made it back from his operation.  Was this what it was like to have friends?  To have people who cared about you?  Other than Zen, he couldn't remember anyone who had been this good to him.

However, the thought of the pain soon came back, filling his senses.  This would hurt, and somewhere along the line, he'd have to go through it again.  He would never live a normal life.  He'd never live without the pain.  Was it worth it, or was he better off dying now?  It was a hard decision, but he had already given his answer.  He decided to live a little longer.  He closed his eyes and fell asleep.

******

"He said it was okay," said Fiona.

"I'm sure he's had to do this before," said Van.  "The mention of the operation made him cringe."

"I can understand why," said Dr. D.  "It'll be very painful."  He sighed before continuing.  "Now, don't get your hopes up.  Just because he's going through with it doesn't mean he'll live.  There's still a chance that the operation will kill him.  His body has been severely weakened, and in his injured state, he may not withstand it."

"You shouldn't say things like that," chided Moonbay.  "He can make it."

"Exactly," agreed Karl.  Irvine said nothing and Scarlet was currently out on a walk.

"Hey Irvine," said Moonbay, catching his attention.  "Aren't you going to say something?"

"There isn't really anything for me to say," he said casually.  "I don't have much of an opinion on this."

"So you don't care?" Moonbay questioned angrily.

"I feel the same as all of you, I guess," he responded.  "Whoever did this to him deserves to be punished, I mean, injecting metals into him to enhance him as a soldier is just sick."

"I agree," said Van.  "We have to get back at the person who did that.  I mean, what if this guy doesn't stop with Sai?  What if he does it to other people and creates an army of advanced soldiers?"

"That's why we need to find out who did this," said Karl.  "I know it may seem rude, but we'll have to interrogate Sai as soon as possible."

"Can we at least give him time to rest?" pleaded Fiona.  Interrogating an injured man didn't seem right, especially one who was dealing with so much.  Karl nodded to her, giving the okay.

******

Scarlet found herself at Sai's hospital room.  She opened the door and walked in, heading over to the sleeping boy.  He was so much like her.  He had the same metal flowing through his veins that she did.  He had been hurt like she had, only worse.

"Sai," she whispered, getting his attention.  He opened his eyes and turned to her.  "I'm sorry," she said, noticing the confusion in his eyes.  "I'm sorry this happened to you…that you're sick."  She wanted to tell him.  She wanted to explain what had happened to him, but she had promised not to say anything about the zoid magnite flowing through his blood.  She had promised.  She wouldn't break it, no matter how much she wanted to.  She owed it to them all.  She felt bad for Sai.  He hadn't been created, but opened up and experimented on.  It was sad and she wanted to cry for him.  All she could tell him was how sorry she was.

"I swear we'll get whoever did this to you," she said to him.  "You don't deserve this pain; you shouldn't have to go through an operation just to live.  It isn't fair.  It isn't fair at all."  She hadn't noticed that she was crying until she saw the confusion wash over Sai's face, as if he was studying her.  She reached to her cheek and felt the dampness from her tears.  She was crying.  That was something she still wasn't used to.  Tears hadn't been used by her for a long time and she was currently just experiencing everything she had forgotten about.  Sorrow and pity were two of those things.  She wanted to help Sai, to lessen his pain.  He had been through so much and she wanted to help him through it.

"I'll see you later, Sai.  I'll come back right before the operation, okay?" she said softly.  He was knocked from his stupor and simply nodded to her.  She turned around and left the room.

'She was crying,' Sai noted.  'She was crying…for me.  Scarlet was…I don't get it.  Why?  She's…supposed to be a killer and yet she's so…human.'  The thought confused him.  He wasn't used to being alone with his thoughts.  He hated his mind, because it wandered when he had nothing to do.  He closed his eyes again, trying to drown it all out.  Scarlet's face came back to him.  Why, he didn't know, but it did.  He couldn't take it.  She was crying.  He hated it when women cried.  It bothered him for some reason.

'I need to just stop thinking,' he told himself.  He would have to go under soon.  He wasn't ready.  He didn't want to feel that pain again.  It would be so easy to just die.  All he had to do was pull out a few of these IVs and he could die.  Painfully, but he would die.  It was becoming tempting.  He was about to pull one from his arm when he froze.

'What am I thinking?'  He quickly let go and lowered his arm.  'What is wrong with me?  I can't die yet.  I want to live…don't I?'  He decided to forget about it.  He'd let them do the operation.  He knew his new found "friends" would have a few questions for him afterwards, but that was okay.  He decided in advance that he'd answer them, unless it was a question that may endanger his general.  Otherwise, he'd share his information.  He owed them that, at least.

He finally closed his eyes and fell asleep, awaiting the painful operation.  He would live.  He wanted to.  He had to.

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Short, I know, but writer's block will do that to you.

Happy holidays!

Bye!


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